The Demon Inside Me
by Raven'sDarkSide
Summary: The Titans meet a strange girl and attempt to help her out. But she is more of a challenge than she looks. Will the Titans be able to take her down? Or will they be the ones defeated? Rating may change.
1. Chapter 1

The Demon Inside Me

It was two weeks until Halloween. The autumn air was cold and crisp. Colorful leaves were littering the streets. Children were laughing and playing in the park while their parents watched nearby. Crime had momentarily stopped so even the resident heroes, the Teen Titans, were enjoying the day by taking a walk. All of this was about to change, however, for the sky was suddenly illuminated by what looked like a falling meteor!

"Dudes!" The green shape shifter cried, "Today has been great and all, but I wish something would happen!" He threw his hands up at the sky and noticed the fiery light a second before it crashed into an abandoned building with a deafening sound.

"What was that?!" Cyborg exclaimed with shock.

"Be careful what you wish for." Raven, the resident Goth, replied.

"Titans go!" Robin yelled and they rushed towards the scene to see if anyone was hurt. They had just made it to the crash site, about a hundred yards from it actually, when they stopped suddenly. A shadowy image seemed to be standing in the light from the fire.

"Hello? Someone is there?" Starfire asked. Her voice seemed to do something to whatever was there because it seemed to move towards her. It was hard to tell from the smoke and heat waves radiating off of the crash.

"Careful team," Robin replied drawing his bow-staff. "We don't know who or what it is." Everyone got into a battle stance as the figure stepped out of the smoke and fire. It was a strange site to behold: the figure seemed human-like. It was covered in a beige colored suit of amour. Not like in the medieval times for those of you with a low IQ, but you couldn't tell the form and it seemed almost like concrete. You could only see its eyes because of the amour and the muzzle around its mouth. (Like the one Hannibal Lector wore) What was the weirdest to them was that, although it was about Raven's height, about 5' 5", it was wearing bigger cuffs than Starfire's had been when they had first met her.

"Whoa." Was Beast Boy's reply to the site. The others were speechless.

"It reminds me of, me, does it not?" Starfire said slowly.

"Yeah. Freaky." Cyborg stood up straight. "Except, the handcuffs are like, twice the size yours were.

"Perhaps it is from the same planet!" Starfire cried joyfully and went over to see.

"Starfire! Wait!" Robin yelled but she had already flown over. As she got closer she could see that there was a very large, heavy chain around the 'person's' ankles. It turned to her and started to…growl. It was growling at her!

"Hello friend! I am Starfire of Tameran! Where are you from?" She asked kindly. It backed up and turned so that its whole body was facing her. Then she did something stupid, something that could have cost her her life: she got really close. The figure swung its cuffs, and incredible feat considering their size, and she flew into the nearest window with a shout of pain.

"Starfire! Titans, attack!" Robin ordered and they jumped into a fight. Cyborg blasted it with his sonic cannon, Raven threw her dark energy at it, and Beast Boy charged as a rhino. Robin had gone off to tend to Starfire. There was a mixture of black, blue, and green as a cloud of dust grew where the figure had once stood. Did I say once? I meant was _still_ standing. The dust had cleared as the three Titans stood back to survey the damage, and Robin and Starfire came back over. To everyone's surprise, it was still there! Still standing straight and looking directly at them.

"Whoa." Now Cyborg said the reply Beast Boy had earlier. Then they fell silent as a loud cracking noise could be heard.

"Ugh. What have I done to anger…her?" Starfire finished this last part as the blasts they had given the figure had broken the chain and caused the amour to crack and fall off. Underneath was a girl dressed in a skin-tight black leather/rubber-like suit. The muzzle and cuffs were still on, however. A barely audible mocking laugh could be heard coming from her.

"Dude, is she _laughing_ at us?" Beast Boy asked.

"I think so." Cyborg replied.

"She won't be laughing for long. Titans, take her down!" Robin gave the command and they all set off towards the girl. She appeared to be about 15, and while most would think that a girl couldn't stand a chance against three guys and two super powered girls, this team got the surprise, and work-out, of their life. Robin was in the lead as he drew his staff again and swung at her. She merely ducked, suck out her foot, and sent the Boy Wonder sprawling into the street. Cyborg was next with his cannon charged and ready to fire.

"I don't want to do this little lady." He tried to reason with her first.

"Gleef na corta? Sed fa porth gleef na corta!" Cyborg stood there in complete confusion before being hit hard enough to go flying backwards. Starfire had stopped her attack in shock and recognition of her home language.

"She knows Tameranian!" She cried with glee. Raven shot a blast of her energy at the girl as Beast Boy came in as a ram. What happened next was confusing because of what happened, but also because it happened so fast. As Raven's attack flew towards the girl, she turned her cuffs slightly and the attack bounced off and hit the green ram that had been approaching, causing him to fly off to the side and become unconscious. Raven held a moment of shock before looking at where the girl was; sure she was smiling behind that muzzle. Either she hadn't noticed what had happened or didn't care, because she suddenly rushed at Raven and knocked her aside before she could put up a good defense.

"Heh heh heh." The girl gave a low laugh at what she had done before she screamed in agony as a star bolt hit her back. She fell to the ground on her side. Starfire's eyes and hands glowed green for a moment longer until she saw that the girl was unconscious.

"Robin! I fear I may have been to, harsh? Is it?" Robin came over when he heard her call. But he only gave her a smile for knocking the girl out. Cyborg, Raven, and Beast Boy came over after they recovered from the hit's the girl had given them

"What's happen-" Cyborg was cut off when he saw the girl on the ground. Before he could ask what happened to her, she gave a groan and stood up quickly. The girl turned around and growled loudly. She didn't run at them, however, and seemed to be waiting for one of them to make the first move. Robin had his staff out again and moved towards her. She didn't move the slightest bit and didn't even growl when he got within five feet of her.

"Now look, we're just trying to help and you go and fling us across the street like trash! What is your problem?! We just want to help you, not hurt you!" Robin had gotten up into her face and was screaming at the poor girl. He backed up when he was done, realizing what he had said. "I-I'm­­-" He stopped trying to apologize when he saw the girl's face was completely emotionless. In fact, she almost looked bored. What was really going on was that she couldn't decide whether to look hurt (fake) or to become angry. So she just opted to show nothing.

"Teg porth gof loga?" She asked in a bored voice.

"Um, what?" Robin responded. He was still about a foot away from her.

"She said 'are you done yet'." Starfire helped.

"Uh, yes?" He responded, looking back at the girl whose eyes were now narrowed.

"Forg." (good) As soon as she said this short word Robin was sent flying back into the other Titans. Raven and Starfire avoided him by flying and began to shoot at the girl who easily, too easily, out maneuvered the shots. The boys quickly got up and joined the attack. Starfire was no longer worried about hurting the younger girl too badly. After all: she had gotten up moments after she had passed out from the pain and gotten right back into the fight. What the girl did next made all of them, especially Robin, stop what they were doing for a second: she avoided a star bolt by doing a back flip even with her cuffs on!

"Dude! Did you just see what she did?" Beast Boy exclaimed.

"So she did a back flip, so what?" Raven replied as they started to fight again. They had to chase her down, however, because she had started to run down the street as soon as she had landed from her flip. Robin shot his grappling hook and it coiled around her feet, causing her to fall to the ground. She turned onto her back, sucked in a breath of pain between her teeth, and rolled back so she was on her side. She kicked and moved her feet so the rope came off just as Raven grabbed her in her energy.

" Gok. Fer. Ki !" The girl said as she struggled to get free.

"We will not let you go until you tell us why you are hurting us!" Starfire informed as she floated over with the others. The girl ignored her and tried to kick at the black energy holding her above the ground. This was useless of course, and the Titans merely watched her struggle fruitlessly. Finally the girl gave a sigh and hung her head.

"Dort. Ji'd hur porth gy Ji'h nuyt porth.." They looked at Starfire to ask what she had said.

"She has said she will tell us."

"Glork." The girl lifted her head up again, " Reg te porth gok fer awer."

"She says she will only tell us if we let her down." Starfire informed the others. Robin pondered this for a moment before nodding to Raven to let her go. Raven promptly dropped her as the energy came back to her. The girl let out a sound one makes when they land on the ground from being held up. (there are may sounds, just choose one) She climbed back to her feet, looked at the team, and then ran down the nearest alley without another word.

"She tricked us!" Beast Boy pointed out the obvious as the others were already chasing after her. Beast Boy quickly ran after his team to help catch the delinquent.

Robin had chased her down an alley and he now found her looking at something on the ground. As he 'snuck' up on her she abruptly turned to face, him, leaving the object on the ground as she could not grab it due to her binds. Starfire came up behind her, eyes and hands glowing. Raven was floating over head and Cyborg and Beast Boy came up behind Starfire and Robin. The girl immediately turned and began to run, but Robin shot out his grappling hook and it wrapped around her body, causing her to fall onto the cold, hard ground. She let out an 'oomph' before wiggling around and kicking her legs to try and get free as the Titans rushed over to restrain her. She managed to loosen the rope enough to wriggle out and stood up before they could reach her. Robin brought out three disks incase she tried anything. She merely stood still, but her eyes kept flickering between the teens and the object on the ground. Robin and the others saw this, but kept up their battle stances.

"Please, I just want to help." Robin tried to explain to her again. The girl thought for a bit before getting a spark in her eyes. After a sigh she nodded. They all were surprised. But made sure to keep their guard up. Robin chanced it and put his weapons away before taking a step towards her. He froze and prepared to go after her again when she raised her cuffs, but she only motioned for him to stop. They were now confused. She turned her head to the ground, moved her foot, and rolled a marble towards the Boy Wonder. He glanced at it before raising an eyebrow at the girl. She motioned for him to pick it up. Slowly he bent down, all the while keeping his eyes on her incase she rushed at him. Cyborg, Starfire, Raven, and Beast Boy were prepared to lunge at her if their leader needed help.

Robin picked up the blue marble and held it up to the girl as if to ask if that was what she wanted. She nodded her head and extended her cuffs, receiving a flinch from the boy and a half step towards her from the others. She slightly lowered them and, with her head, motioned for Robin to come over with the marble. He did, cautiously and confused, and again cocked an eyebrow at her. She looked at the middle of the large binds and when he did, Robin noticed a very small hole in the, Just big enough for a round, marble-sized object actually. This is where we would see a light bulb appear above his head as he carefully placed the small marble in the hole. There was a loud clicking noise, which caused them all to jump, and the area around the hole began to glow blue and spread out in random lines (think of how the lines are on Cyborg's design). The eerie glow made its way around the entirety of the girls enormous binds and more loud clicking could be heard all through the process. It sounded exactly like a series of locks being opened, for that was what was happening. Then the girl stepped back and held her hands out as far as they would go. One last loud click could be heard before the maybe 50lb cuffs fell off with a loud thud. She wriggled her fingers and moved and stretched her arms and hands.

"Way to go Robin!" Beast Boy cheered. Raven rolled her eyes, Starfire cheered and 'oh glorious!', Cyborg started clapping, and Robin smiled at the girl, who wasn't paying attention. When she finally put her arms down to her side (wonder how long it's been since she's been able to do that?) she stared at the boy in front of her with nothing but pure hate. Robin just barely managed not to flinch under that cold and hateful stare. Then she closed her eyes, gave a very small nod, and turned away. She took off the strapped on muzzle as she turned away.

"Wait." Robin reached out and grabbed her arm, hoping to find out more about this mysterious girl. She froze, clenched her fists, and gave a sideways glare (these can be the scariest because you aren't even looking directly at the person, I have mastered the glare). Uh oh. Before they even knew what was happening, the Titans had just entered the hardest battle they had ever faced.

A/N ooh! Cliffie! Yeah I know you hate me, but I don't really care. So, did you love it, hate it, wish I would drop dead, have any comment at all? If you are giving me a good review, then you mean everything! So, please tell me what you thought! Oh, and if you flame me, I will just use them to build a big bonfire to roast all of my enemies, flamers included!


	2. Chapter 2

(A/N Okay. Because of my sister RavensWinterRain, I finally got reviews!!! Yay! To cratbro and angelicravenx3 thank you **SO MUCH**!! I will never forget you and shall check out your stories right away!! Also, angelicravenx3, I'm not a huge fan of Robin, mainly because he is an egotistic, spiky-haired Batman wannabe with sexuality issues 'coughs' gay 'coughs again', but he is a great guy. Also, I was practically drooling when he turned into Street Robin â in Trouble in Tokyo Well, this chapter will be very hard and probably suck. That is why I have put it off for so long. Heh. Here goes nothing)

The mysterious girl turned around slowly and only half way to glare at the walking traffic light that dared to touch her.

"We don't even know your name." Robin replied to the death glare. The girl's fists clenched and Robin let go. Hate was just radiating off her as he began to think he had made a mistake.

"Robin? I believe you have made her angry." Starfire interrupted.

"Yeah dude. I think you should just back away slowly." Cyborg enunciated the last three words as the girl began to growl like a pissed dog. Raven's hands began to glow, and everyone began to get more alert when Robin, being the stupid boy he is, reached out to put his hand on the girl's shoulder.

"I just want to know your--" He was cut off as she 'rawered', claws shot out of her gloves, and scratched Robin across the face, sending him sprawling to the ground with blood dripping down his cheek. All this happened in less than the blink of an eye. The Titans made a move to attack and or restrain the attacker, but Robin held up a hand to stop them.

"But Friend Robin, she has harmed you and must be punished!" Starfire protested.

"No, it was my fault, and I deserved it." Robin, figuring this out on his own, replied. "She was obviously warning me to stay back and I wasn't listening." Robin stood up with Cyborg's help. Raven and Starfire were keeping an eye on the girl as she had tried to run off again. Except she had more like tried to walk off, like the Titans didn't concern her or weren't a threat.

"I still don't thing we should put her off like she couldn't hurt us. And what's wrong with you Robin? Normally you would be telling us to capture her and put her in jail." Raven pointed out.

"Yeah. And this girl is whoopin' your but without doin' much." Cyborg added. Beast Boy saw that she was about to strike at Robin again, so he turned into an anaconda and wrapped around her before she could get close. She was struggling as the others closed in to help restrain her. Robin grabbed the muzzle she had discarded and brought it close so he could try and put it back on. He was beginning to think there was a very good reason she had been bound so much. The girl stopped her thrashing for a moment to growl and glare at the people around her, and the green snake preventing her from moving very much.

"Now if you stop struggling I won't put this back on. But I want information about you ok?" Robin tried to persuade her. Her eyes shifted back and forth, probably looking for a way to escape from the snake, but finally she sighed in defeat.

"Ssssaaassssnnnnnaaaakkkk?" The girl spoke to Beast Boy and he dropped instantly, almost frightened out of his mind and shifted back.

"I-I-I under-der-st-stood th-that." He stuttered, trying to regain his composure. All the Titans turned to look at him, though keeping an eye on the girl who was staring back at them.

"You understood that? All it sounded like to me was a whisper." Cyborg scratched the back of his head, while keeping his sonic cannon trained at the angry female in front of him.

"Sh-she told me to let go." Beast Boy stood up, still looking a little shaky but pretty much back to normal. After all, it's not everyday that the person with the lowest IQ (seemingly) on your team understands some foreign language.

"And you listened to her?" Raven questioned in her monotone.

"Well, I, wouldn't you if you suddenly understood some foreign language you didn't know existed?!" Beast Boy shot back.

"Robin? Why is she looking at you like that?" Starfire questioned as she noticed that the strange figure was slowly approaching her boyfriend with a cruel smile and narrowed eyes.

This brought everyone's attention, which had been on BB for the moment, back to their foe quickly.

"Puratha sek deniha." She growled, and her smile disappeared as claws shot out of her gloves, the Titans reacted to the threat by shooting or running at her, and Starfire rushed in front of Robin to shield him.

Raven levitated a crate and threw it at the girl, Cyborg shot his cannon at her while running in to get a swing, Beast Boy turned into a ram to…ram her, Robin leaped out from behind Starfire (ignoring her protests) with a couple of freeze disks ready, and Starfire flew into the sky to launch and aerial attack of star bolts at the person who threatened her Robin.

Almost too fast to recognize what was happening, Robin had thrown the disks, all of them missing the girl's sudden agility, the star bolts hit Cyborg after he was thrown back by the girl's strength as well, and Raven's crate smashed into Beast Boy as the girl leaped aside. As the dust cleared Starfire was making sure she had not injured Cyborg too badly, Raven was healing a pretty bad cut on Beast Boy's head, and the girl had Robin pinned against a wall with one hand around his neck and the other, claws included, poised to thrust forward into his chest.

"Robin!" Beast Boy cried when he looked up and saw the scene. Raven, Starfire, and Cyborg quickly turned to see what was happening to their friend.

"Get away from him if you want to leave with all your limbs intact." Raven's eyes were glowing white and the warning was evident in her voice. Starfire floated on the girl's left side with both her hands and eyes glowing green with anger. Raven stepped to her right side, Cyborg at her back, and Beast Boy flew up the roof as a sparrow and then stood poised to jump down and attack as anything that could bite or claw at this point.

"That goes for all of us." Cyborg stated. Their foe looked around at the teens surrounding her and decided that for the moment it would be better to go along with it, and promptly dropped Robin harshly to the ground where he sat gasping for air. She raised her hands so they were barely above her shoulders in mock defeat. The Titans did not drop their guard however, but Cyborg inched his way around the girl, cannon still aimed as she was only about a foot from Robin, and then bent down to his brightly colored friend to see if he needed help. Raven went around their foe's back and promptly handcuffed her. Beast Boy jumped down to help Cyborg with Robin, and Starfire was scolding the now handcuffed girl.

"You have been very bad! We merely wanted to help you, and you chose to harm us instead. Look what you did to Robin." She indicated her boyfriend who was now on his feet and breathing easier. He also had a few cuts and bruises. The girl simply blinked. "Do you not care that you have harmed all of us?" Starfire questioned.

"Hetnart, Ji larthud fex." She smiled evilly.

"Only someone with no heart can enjoy hurting people." Starfire almost wanted to cry but held the tears back. Raven had gone over to heal Robin. Starfire grabbed the girl's shoulder, causing her to flinch, and dragged the criminal over to her leader to see what they were going to do with her. "Robin? You are, okay?" She asked.

"Yeah Star, I'm fine." He smiled and rubbed his neck lightly.

"What are we going to do with her?" Cyborg jerked a thumb in the direction of the girl.

"Take her to jail of course." Robin glared at the girl for half a second.

"But- no, never mind." Beast Boy looked slightly troubled.

"What is it BB?" Cyborg asked. Beast Boy took a second to decide if he should speak what he knew.

"Well, it's just that…" He started.

"What do you wish to say Friend Beast Boy?" Starfire asked kindly.

"I don't think she's meaning to harm us out of amusement or play." Robin cocked an eyebrow and Beast Boy lowered his head and twiddled his thumbs. "She's afraid of us." He looked up nervously.

"She's afraid of us?" Cyborg repeated, and looked over at their captive, still held by Starfire. She began to growl lowly. She tried to walk away but Starfire jerked her back. Their captive smirked, _rotated_ her arms over her head, grabbed the insides of the cuffs with the opposite hands, and pulled, breaking them easily. Robin and everyone else's eyes went wide in shock at how easily she broke them. She motioned with one finger for Robin to come closer.

"Puratha." She purred. Robin raised one eyebrow but did not move.

"I wouldn't go anywhere near her if she can throw me and break a pair of _steal_ cuffs that easily." Cyborg advised. Raven had stayed relatively quiet through the whole ordeal, except when Robin had been threatened with his life, but she knew something wasn't right about their, former, captive. Robin lowered himself slightly and drew his bow staff, extending it for battle.. Cyborg activated his sonic cannon, Raven's hands and eyes glowed with her power, Starfire floated up for a better advantage as her eyes and hands glowed with her power as well, and Beast Boy turned into a snarling wolf. The girl reached to a pocket on the side of her belt, also drew out a bow staff and extended it, but a sharp spear-like point came out of both ends, making it become a much deadlier weapon.

"Glorf necru?" She smiled cruelly.

"Yes! We shall." Starfire replied, at the same time translating. Everyone stood poised for battle, each one waiting for a signal. The Titans waiting for their leader to send them in, and the girl waiting for any movement at all.

"Titans, go!" Robin gave the signal and everybody rushed in at the same time. There was so much chaos it was hard to tell what body part or weapon belonged to who. But I shall try to explain it, mind you, this goes a lot better in my mind. Robin had swung his staff at the girl, who ducked, Beast Boy leaped at her and grabbed her arm. She yelped a little bit and threw him off and towards Raven, who made a shield above the ground for Beast Boy to land on, while simultaneously throwing a lamp post at the girl. She jumped over it and barely missed Cyborg's sonic blast by spinning in midair, which surprised quite a few of them. Starfire picked up Robin and threw him at their foe, but to his somewhat surprise, and misfortune, the girl turned around and jumped up to spin around and kick him back into a building. Suddenly she was thrown into the side of another building by Cyborg. "Booya!" He shouted. Starfire went over to bring Robin back. The girl stood up a little slowly, rubbed her head after a brick fell on it (ouch!) then glared at Cyborg with a stare that made him shiver. She ran at him and they locked hands, each trying to push the other back. After a moment she released her right hand and Cyborg used his now free left arm to charge his cannon for an attack. The girl pulled her hand back, her fist clenched like she was going to punch him. Cyborg laughed on the inside; just because she could toss him and the other a distance didn't mean she could do some serious harm to someone made of titanium steel right? Robin, Raven, Starfire, and Beast Boy had come back to the scene by now and were waiting to see what would happen and if they needed to help. All of a sudden the girl smiled and punched Cyborg in the chest where his heart would be, if he still had it. (that is actually sad L ) To everyone's surprise, it went clear through! Cyborg looked down and gapped in shock, surprise, and he was just plain dumbfounded. Their foe pulled her hand out, now unclenched, slowly through the hole she had created. Being in his state of shock Cyborg also released his other hand. Little pieces of him fell to the ground as the girl's hand came back to her.

"Cyborg! Are you the alright?!" Starfire flew over to him to assist.

"Starfire! Stop!" Robin commanded and she did as her leader said.

"But Robin…" She began but was interrupted by Raven.

"Robin's right. If she can do that then be careful. We wouldn't want that to happen to someone else now would we?" She asked rhetorically. Starfire hung her head.

"No. We would not." Her head suddenly shot up with her eyes and hands glowing an angry green. "But that does not mean we can not still fight!" She launched herself at the girl with surprising speed, picked her up and tossed her into the air, then shot a series of star bolts after her intended target. Most of them hit their mark, the others shooting past the twisting girl, and caused her to fall to the ground. She hit the ground hard and Starfire gave a smirk of achievement. When the dust cleared, however, the smirk was wiped off very quickly. The girl was standing and didn't look too happy. She turned her neck to crack it, but instead of drawing her bow staff or extending her claws, she reached behind her back and, from seemingly nowhere, unsheathed two long swords! This caused Robin to immediately go on red alert, because he knew just how dangerous they could be when used correctly, or just plain used. The other Titans were also on alert just at the fact that she had produced some wicked looking swords.

"Dude! Where the heck did those come from?!" Beast Boy shouted.

"Careful team! Those are very dangerous." Robin warned. The girl started to twirl the swords in circles parallel to her body. ( at her side) Then she threw them up on the air, did a couple front flips to get closer to the Titans, and when she straightened up she caught the swords in a position where her left hand was far back with the weapon aimed forward above her head, and her right hand was outstretched at shoulder height with that weapon also pointing forward.

"Cool." Beast Boy muttered.

"Don't encourage the enemy Beast Boy." Raven scolded.

"I wasn't!" He protested. Raven rolled her eyes.

"Titans! Be very careful if you get close, but I think it's time we take this amateur out. Titans, go!" Robin gave the famous signal for action and his team obeyed. As they rushed her, their adversary lowered her swords and then threw them in the air again. She leaped after them not two seconds later and barely dodged a sonic blast, a series of star bolts, a couple bird-a-rangs, and a car wrapped in dark energy. She spun in the air about three times, then suddenly stopped as her ascent of about 7 feet stopped. She had about 2 feet of clearance from the 4 ft. car flying about a foot off the ground flew under her. She caught her swords as she fell and landed softly on her feet in a crouched position. Unfortunately for her, she had lost concentration for a moment while enjoying the feeling of being in the air and didn't notice as a freeze disk spun towards her. She noticed this too late and her entire bottom half was encased in ice. Cyborg clapped Robin on the back and he also received lots of words of praise. The girl struggled to get out and resorted to pounding on the ice. After a few times she brought her hands together into one large fist and slammed on the ice. It cracked into little pieces and she stepped out from the glittering dust. But before she could go two steps further, she was hit by a stream of blue and green, throwing her backwards into a car. The impact crippled the car and left a huge dent and some broken windows. The girl was stuck for a moment, but managed to pry herself from the wreckage.

"She just won't go down!" Beast Boy complained.

"Then we'll have to hit her harder." Robin said before charging after their foe. His fellow teammates followed suit and chose their weapons. Cyborg decided to go hand-to-hand again, Raven picked up a lamppost, Starfire had her star bolts at ready, Beast Boy turned into a grizzly bear, and Robin drew a couple bird-a-rangs. The second, and last, round began.

A/N Yay! OK, I know I haven't updated in…November 12th!? Aw, man I'm sorry. But I only got reviews recently, again thank you very much, and I'm a first time writer and not very good at battle scenes, though they are excellent in my head lol. Well I hope you guys enjoy it! Please give me feedback, and constructive criticism is extremely welcomed J


	3. Chapter 3

(A/N: So far the few reviews I have (love you all!) all have good feedback and make me happy :) Yay! So here is my latest chapter of The Demon Inside Me!)

Raven threw the lamppost at the girl while Starfire tossed in some star bolts and shot a twin beam of energy from her eyes. Beast Boy charged the girl and swiped at her. Robin threw his discs, and Cyborg threw a punch or two in. The girl caught the lamppost and swung it so it knocked down most of the discs. Then she threw it at Starfire and Raven, who were next to each other, causing them to scatter. Beast boy took a swipe at her while she was distracted and Robin successfully hit her with a couple bird-a-rangs. This knocked the girl back a couple steps and Beast Boy took this advantage to land a blow to her head. Starfire and Raven floated back to see where they could help. The girl stumbled after the last hit, stood up defiantly, reached to her belt, and with a quick flick of her wrist a smoke cloud was emitted. "Quickly, before she gets away!" Robin shouted and they all dove into the smoke, Beast Boy becoming a pterodactyl and fanning the air with his wings to make is disappear. When the smoke had cleared the five Titans were left with only themselves, a news crew that had stopped by early in the fight, a bunch of cuts and bruises, and a bruised pride. The reporters and camera people rushed the team when they saw that the enemy was nowhere to be found.

"Robin! How do you feel after this humiliating defeat?"

"Do you know where she has gone?"

"What's her name?"

"Do you know if she is linked to any villains you've fought before?" These and more questions were thrown at the Titans.

"People!" Robin shouted, successfully shutting the crowd up, "If we have any chance of catching this person before she gets out of town you will have to let us go!" The people groaned at not being able to get answers from the team, but moved aside so their heroes could do their work. They piled into the T-car and set off to the Tower to think on what happened, and see if they could gather information from what happened.

-----------------------------------------------Robin------------------------------------------------

Robin slammed his fist down on the table. "How could this have happened?!" He shouted at no one in particular. "After all of our training, all of our battles with Slade and the Brotherhood of Evil, all of our strategizing, to be beaten by someone who thought the fight was some sort of game, and didn't look like she was truly trying half the time!" He let out a loud sound of frustration and sat down heavily. Starfire came over and laid a hand on his shoulder. Robin looked up after a moment.

"It was not your fault. Yes, the defeat was most shameful, but we have learned not to underestimate new enemies. Perhaps we should try new simulations later today, as we have beaten all of them." She suggested. Robin nodded, stood up, and smiled up at her.

"You're right Star. But it was still partly my fault. I've gone soft and kept trying to help her when all she wanted to do was hurt me, and my team." He frowned.

"All of us had some of the fault. But we must learn from our mistakes and work to improve what we can." Starfire advised. Robin just smiled and nodded. She may be naïve about most Earth ways, even after a few years of being here, but Starfire was very wise when it came to cheering people up and shoving the truth in their face. He still couldn't believe she had fallen for him, just another Earth guy with problems. It amazed him to this day that such a beauty like her could ever love him. She embraced him in a comforting hug, not her bone crushing hug all of them will never get used to, and when they separated Robin knew that no matter what, they always had each other. All of them.

------------------------------------------------------Cyborg----------------------------------------------

Cyborg sulked into the common room and sat down on the couch. He looked at his dints and dings and the fist-sized hole where his heart would have been and mixed emotions flooded him. He felt angry, angry that they could have been beaten down so easily and that their target got away. He felt relief, relief that they had made it out of there in one piece. He felt sad, sad because she had punched through were his heart _would_ have been had it not been for that accident. More than enough he wished the doctors had just let him go, so that he wouldn't have to deal with being what he was. He felt a diluted sense of joy, joy because she did that to him and he could live through it. All of these emotions and thoughts that went with them happened in about five seconds and it made his stomach sick. Cyborg shook his head to clear these thought and went to make a Super Triple Mega Disaster Meaty Meat Sandwich. The name and contents thought up by himself. After making his sandwich he saw Starfire talking to Robin and smiled. Raven was probably in her room and Beast Boy was on the couch. Thinking a game of Super Racers would do them some good he sat down next to his beast friend.

---------------------------------------------------Beast Boy---------------------------------------------

Beast Boy sat down heavily on the couch after Cyborg had left. Scowling and lost in his thoughts he stared blankly ahead. He was thinking about the events earlier that day; who wasn't? the thing is, if anybody knew how much he was thinking and what about they would probably take him to the med bay to see if one of his brain cells came back to life.

_" I don't get it. It was just like any other battle with a new villain. But, she laughed when we were beaten back, she had some sort of super-human strength, her agility could blow Robin away anytime, and the way her eyes flickered when she thought of another way to trick us…her eyes!" _Beast Boy suddenly straightened up in his seat. _" They were emerald green like mine, but something wasn't right about them. They seemed to, well, _change_, when she got angry. I couldn't get close enough and it was dark but I'm sure of it. Starfire doesn't seem to think she's from Tamaran, but she spoke the language fluently, and her strength. Could it be that she just has a different view than the others? Oh this is just so confusing!" _Beast Boy felt someone sit down on the other end of the couch. That person spoke and it shook Beast Boy from his thoughts.

"Hey B?" It was Cyborg. Beast Boy looked over. "Up for a game of Super Racers?" His friend smiled devilishly. One last thought flickered through his mind before Beast Boy grabbed a controller eagerly. _" She seemed scared of us, like a trapped animal. And she only fought to keep us away. Why was she so afraid?" _

---------------------------------------------Raven-----------------------------------------------------

Raven sat at the end of her bed with a book in hand, but not really paying attention to it. She, like all of them, was thinking the day over, reflecting on her mistakes and pondering over this new enemy. Finally after a few more moments of struggling to keep her thoughts and emotions in check and focus on her book, she put said book down, laid back, and spoke to herself. _"Fine. I'm listening. What?" _She asked her emotions.

'Yay!' Happy yelled. _" 'Yay'?"_ Raven questioned. Happy just smiled and giggled.

'What she means to say' Spoke Knowledge 'Is that we are happy you are listening to us instead of ignoring us and pushing us away.' Raven sighed. 'Now, _we_ know what's on your mind, but do you?' _"That makes no sense." _Raven cocked an eyebrow. Sometimes she hated Knowledge with her riddles. Said emotion sighed.

'Speak what's on your mind by going over today's events. It will help sort out the frustration and perhaps answer some questions, or it could bring up some that need to be answered.' Knowledge smiled, well, knowledgably.

_"Okay. Well-"_

'Out loud.' Knowledge stopped her.

_"But why?"_

'Because it helps to sort out ones thoughts when you only have one to focus on at a time. When you think your thoughts, may others and interrupt them and make you lose your train of thought. When you speak them you can only talk about one at a time, and therefore they are less jumbled.'

"Oh." Was all she could spit out at the words her own emotion told her. "Okay, well, I guess the confusion started with that, fireball, that hit the building. It looked like a meteor or something, but shouldn't it have left a crater if it fell from beyond the atmosphere? And I suppose the fire could have come from it and the building, but there was a lot more than if it had hit an abandoned building and been a flaming rock. No, it had to have been something else."

'There is a question you and your team can answer, and it might provide some useful answers.' Knowledge smiled.

'Yay Knowledge!' Happy bounced around being, happy. Brave rolled her eyes and Rude just scratched herself and burped.

'Know-it-all.' She murmured. Brave slapped her in the head.

'Shush!'

"Okay, good. Then she came out of the wreckage completely unharmed, or so it seemed, covered head-to-toe in some sort of armor and binds. It took all of our efforts together just to crack it, and then the cuffs were still locked around her. Robin put some marble or something in a hole that apparently was there to unlock them, and then when he grabbed her she sliced him." She felt her anger grow and forced it down. "She also threw all of us back more than enough without the cuffs off, and that muzzle was on there for a reason, I'm sure of it. She could dodge all of our attacks with ease, unless she got hit right after the other without time to recover, and she kept trying to run away…" Something clicked in her head but she couldn't quite grasp what it meant.

'Perhaps she was afraid.' Wisdom said. Raven scoffed.

"Why would she be afraid if she could kick our buts up and down main street without breaking a sweat?"

'Ask Beast Boy, he might know!' Happy squealed.

"Beast Boy?" Raven sat up and cocked and eyebrow. "What would he know about-" Her eyes widened as she remembered him saying she was afraid, and that they should just back off. All her emotions smiled as she got up and went to talk to Beast Boy and see if he found out anything else.

-----------------------------------------------Starfire----------------------------------------------------

Starfire had been sitting in one of the chairs thinking about whether to make the Pudding of Defeat, or the Pudding of Togetherness. She was also thinking about the battle.

_" We did not do most glorious today. But we have not failed completely." _She smiled at this. She saw Robin slam his fists down on the table and yell. Her smile was gone for a moment as she stood up and went over to him. She laid a hand on his shoulder and when he looked up spoke. "It was not your fault. Yes, the defeat was most shameful, but we have learned not to underestimate new enemies. Perhaps we should try new simulations later today, as we have beaten all of them." It seemed to work because he stood up and smiled at her.

"You're right Star. But it was still partly my fault. I've gone soft and kept trying to help her when all she wanted to do was hurt me, and my team." He frowned. Starfire knew she had to snap him out of this or he could get obsessed again, and that was not going to happen.

"All of us had some of the fault. But we must learn from our mistakes and work to improve what we can." Robin smiled and nodded, seemed to be lost in thought for a moment, then she embraced him softly yet firmly to keep his thoughts from becoming dangerous.

-------------------------------------------------TT--------------------------------------------------

Raven came into the common room, and upon seeing everyone else there, slowed her walk and went to get some tea. Not being good at talking to one person around others, she would wait until either Beast Boy would leave or the others. The noise from pixilated cars racing around a 2-D track was starting to get to her. She was grateful when her teapot whistled and she could poor herself a mug of steaming relaxant.

"Booyah! In yo face grass stain!" Cyborg crowed.

"Aw, come on! One more time! I know I can win this time!" Beast Boy egged.

"Sorry man, the T-car needs some maintenance." Cyborg stood up and headed towards the garage. Beast Boy slumped, then looked around to see that the love birds were gone (probably to some secret place, he shivered) and that Raven was sipping on some tea by the table. Remembering a joke he thought up today he got up eagerly and trotted over to her.

"Hey Raven! Wanna hear a joke?" He asked. Raven sighed but nodded. _"At least it will start the conversation and seem less awkward."_ She told herself. Beast Boy, in surprise, closed his mouth and stared at her.

"What?" She snapped. He shook his head.

"It's just…you never willingly want to hear my jokes."

"Well I want to talk to you about something and I figured this would be a good way to start it out." She stated.

"Uhm, ok. Oh!" He got excited again and sat down across from her. "Okay, so a duck walks into a convenience store and asks, 'Do you have any grapes?'" The man says, 'No.'

The next day he comes back and asks again, 'Do you have any grapes?' Again the man says, 'No'.

The duck comes back the next day and asks the same question, 'Do you have any grapes?' The man is tired of this question so he says, 'NO, WE DO NOT HAVE ANY GRAPES, AND IF YOU ASK AGAIN, I WILL NAIL YOUR FEET TO THE FLOOR!!' The duck walks out.

The next day, the duck comes back and asks, 'Do you have any nails?' The man says, 'No.'

'Okay then.' The duck replies. 'Do you have any grapes?' So? What do you think?" He waggled an eyebrow at her.

"It was somewhat humorous. And yet there was no meaning to it, as usual." She took another sip of her tea. Beast Boy lowered his ears. Then he remembered what she said earlier.

"So what did you want to talk to me about?" Raven looked up.

"You recall the battle we had earlier right?" He nodded. "Good. Remember when you tried to tell us that you thought our foe was scared and to leave her alone?" Beast Boy made a weird face for a second.

"Oh yeah! And you didn't listen and we all got our buts kicked." He stated matter-of-factly.

"Correct." Raven took another sip of her almost gone tea. "What I was wondering is why you thought she was afraid, and if you thought anything else was going on." She looked at him and put her empty mug down.

Ok…well, I said she was afraid, and I know this because due to my animal instincts I can smell fear. And there was a lot of it coming from her, especially when we got close or touched her." Raven nodded as Beast Boy started to count on his fingers. "Obviously she was angry even more than afraid, again especially when we got close, and she seethed with it when we touched her. But what freaks me out the most is, well, do you remember when she first scratched Robin, and we were all focused on him?" Raven nodded and an eyebrow rose slightly. "I turned around right after that to keep an eye on her, and she, licked her claws." He said the last part a little slowly.

"She licked her claws?" Raven repeated. Beast Boy nodded.

"And she smiled and a really low laugh came from her. She enjoyed it!" He shuddered. "This girl creeps me out if she likes to drink blood. She might be some alien vampire from space sent here to enslave the human race for their blood banks!" He waved his hands in the air and Raven knew the seriousness in the conversation was gone. She rubbed her temples and sighed.

"Beast Boy? _Please_ be serious for once. This is important."

"Heh. Just trying to lighten the mood Rae."

"Ra_ven_. And anyway, we should tell the others and see if this helps in anyway. Besides, I've got to research the word "Puratha."

"Oh yeah! Strange word. And why did she only call Robin that?"

"That's what I'm going to find out." Raven stood up, put her mug in the sink, and went to her room. Beast Boy sat a minute longer, thinking about how what he could feel the girl, feeling, would help. But mostly he started thinking about the girl he deemed stunning in a creepy if not scary in a mysterious way. The way she flipped and spun away from their attacked, got up right away when rarely hit, and seemed to have fun with beating them. There was also something about her eyes that made him want to study them, see what was going on behind them, find out who she was, why she was here, and why she was the way she was. By the time Beast Boy looked at the clock half an hour had gone by and, shocked and embarrassed, he quickly got up and went to find one of the other Titans, preferably Robin.

A/N There it is, chapter 3 of The Demon Inside Me! Sorry this took so long, but I had a case of, not writer's _block_ but more like writer's _lack_. I just didn't feel the need to write, creepy because this is my first story and have been thinking of it non-stop, and there was a death in my family March 1st. But I got over it, wrote to 6 pages, cool, and brought my few but loyal fans a new chapter :) Also, for those of you noticing the lack of background on my character, I did that on purpose. You won't learn so much as a name for a little while, but believe me, as she comes to trust these outsiders and through her thoughts, you will learn her whole story, tragic as it is. 0.o oops, a little foresight there heh.


	4. Chapter 4

(A/N: Chapter 4 of TDIM! The few but very welcome reviews keep me going Actually, I would probably keep going anyway, but they make me happy, and therefore I write faster lol. Question to anybody with an iPod thing(I'm pretty sure that's what it is): How do you delete unwanted songs on it? My sister does the syncing because she learned it first but unwanted songs (I mean 10 unwanted per 1 wanted 0.o) keep getting on it. _Can_ I delete them? If not, then I hate it. Thanks if anybody can help :)

Robin had gone to the gym to work out and think up of new ways to train his team. Currently he was at the controls in the room above the gym. This is where they developed simulations. He turned a couple dials and flipped a couple switches before writing down what he did and testing it out. It was a partial simulation, but what it showed was a shady illusion of an opponent that had no gender and was able to avoid most attacks the team could dish out at this point. The user could determine gender and, if the enemy was in the database, could choose what villain the hologram would look like. Cyborg was working on tweaking it so the user could mix and match certain physical traits and battle strategies. Nodding to himself Robin set the clipboard he wrote on down and decided to do one more round on the indoor obstacle course before going for dinner. Just as he neared the control panel to set the difficulty, he heard someone the doors open. Looking across the wide space he could see green, black, and purple and determined it to be Beast Boy. Either that or someone had taken a drastic change to their appearance. Robin jogged over to the entrance and saw it was indeed Beast Boy.

"Hey BB, what's up?" He asked cheerfully momentarily forgetting why he was in the gym.

"Hey Rob. Raven and I were talking earlier, weird conversation let me tell you that, and she said to talk to the others about, um, what I felt the girl feel." His eyes squinted as he tried to think of another way to word it.

"What you felt the girl feel? I don't entirely get what you mean." Robin raised an eyebrow.

"Well, it's kinda hard to explain. OK, you remember when I said to leave her alone because she was scared?" Robin nodded. "Well, I could feel that. Especially when we got close or touched her. But she was also angry, especially when we got near or touched her." Beast Boy continued to explain what he felt coming off the girl while Robin listened and got more of an understanding of the day's earlier event. "So, yeah. That's it I guess." Beast Boy shrugged when finished.

"Well that explains some of her behavior. But the main question is still why she was bound like that." Robin crossed his arms and his eyes narrowed as he thought about it.

"Well I'll let you get back to that." Beast Boy turned around and headed out. "Man, now I gotta find Cyborg and Starfire." He mumbled.

"I think Star is watching Cyborg in the garage. And probably ticking him off." He chuckled as he remembered when the T-car was built and how Starfire kept pushing buttons and messing with stuff.

"Thanks." Beast Boy headed in that direction.

Cyborg was tinkering with his 'baby' and trying to buff out some scratches and dents. Starfire was hovering nearby, curious about the many items in the garage. Both of them looked up when the door slid open and their friend walked in.

"Hey B! What's up?" Cyborg wiped his hands with a grease rag and walked over.

"It is most glorious to see you Friend Beast Boy!" Starfire floated over and gave her friend a bone crushing hug.

"Star! Can't. Breathe! Need. Air!" Beast Boy gasped.

"I am most sorry friend!" Starfire released him and Beast Boy took a couple seconds to get his breathing back to normal.

"Okay. Gasp. I think I'm OK. Man Starfire!" She blushed and giggled before apologizing once more. "Okay, so I came here to tell you guys some information both Robin and Raven think is useful." He again explained what he had already told said Titans. "Good? I'm going to bed now." He turned to go out.

"Thanks for sharing that with us B. It will probably come in handy." Cyborg told him as Beast Boy yawned.

"Your visit was most glorious! I believe I shall go see how Friend Robin is now doing." And with that she too flew out the door and left Cyborg to tinker with his car.

Beast Boy fell asleep the moment his head hit the pillow, but he also dreamed. It is said you can see your future, and even your destiny, in dreams. As well as your heart's desires and the messages your subconscious is sending you all the time. Many times we forget our dreams, or interpret them as meaningless. Sometimes, however, they reveal things about you that you didn't know, portray advice, and give out information about something troubling you. This is when we should listen to our dreams, and remember what we dreamt. Beast Boy dreamed of a shadowy figure running away, but never really getting anywhere. He was chasing her through the dream, and each time he got close, she would suddenly disappear and reappear a long distance away. "Wait up! Who are you?" He cried in his dream, but the figure only kept running, until it fell in a heap. He was allowed to catch up, and turned the figure over to find it was a girl. She was still very shadowy, but the most striking feature he could see, that was not shadowy at all and very clear, were her emerald green eyes. They had a tint of red around the iris, and there was fear, hopelessness, rage and hate, mistrust, hurt and betrayal, and knowledge in them. He couldn't believe all those emotions and feelings could be in one place at once, but there they were. She had dark hair, and beyond that he couldn't make out any specific feature. "Who are you?" He asked once more.

"My name is--Beep! Beep! Beep!" Beast Boy awoke to his alarm clock. He didn't remember setting it, but apparently he had. Groaning and sitting up he hit the alarm and shut it off. He looked at the time and saw it was 5:00 p.m. Then he remembered his dream and mentally cursed his alarm clock while glaring at it for waking him up just as he was about to learn the girl's name. He got up and headed to the kitchen, his stomach growling. There was still plenty of light outside, though twilight was approaching. He saw that everybody was in the common room. Robin and Cyborg were playing a video game with Starfire cheering on both of them, and Raven was at the table reading from a large book and sipping her tea occasionally.

Raven looked up to see Beast Boy come in through the doors and go to the fridge. She had found a passage of interest in one of her books. It pertained to a few other languages and what some of the words meant. There was one paragraph where the language was not listed, but some of the words mentioned sounded similar to the words their newest villain had spoken, other than Tameranian that is. Then she found it: Puratha.

"Puratha in the general sense means 'Pure.' It usually refers to one trait or physical being of something other than of heart or mind." She read. "_Trait or physical being?"_ Raven questioned. _"Okay…so why is Robin pure?"_

"Robin!" She called. "I found something." Robin paused his game and all of the team went over to Raven. She read the short description of the word.

"So what does it mean?" Cyborg asked.

"Well, maybe we should look at the similarities and differences of ourselves. Because she only called Robin Puratha." Raven suggested.

"A great idea Raven!" Starfire clapped. "Well I have red hair and you do not, I have green eyes and--"

"I mean," Raven cut Starfire off before she could ramble on for any longer, "that we should look at what Robin has that we don't. For starters." Raven sipped her tea.

"An ego the size of Canada?" Beast Boy whispered to Cyborg loud enough that Robin heard. He mumbled something under his breath that sounded like "Do not" before turning back to Raven.

"Well what does Robin have or show that is pure that we don't?" Cyborg asked.

"Hmm. I'm the only one with black hair?" He suggested.

"Yes, but so did the girl, and she seemed to hate whatever made you pure, so I don't think that would be logical." Raven replied.

"Let us look at ourselves and what makes us _us_, and then see if any of that applies to Friend Robin." Starfire advised.

"Good idea." Robin smiled at her and she blushed and turned away. They all thought in silence for a couple minutes and studied each other carefully. Suddenly the same idea dawned on all but Robin, who was still deep in thought.

"Human!" The four of them shouted at once. This brought Robin out of his thoughts.

"What?" He asked, confused.

"I am half machine," Cyborg started.

"I am an alien," Starfire added.

"I'm half demon," Raven added.

"And I have animal DNA!" Beast Boy finished.

"The only thing you are is human! You don't have animal DNA, demon blood, metal parts, and you aren't an alien! You are pure human…Puratha." Raven informed.

Shock spread over Robin's face as he realized they were right. Then it darkened when he remembered about how the girl tried so desperately to harm only him. He gingerly touched the three scratch marks on his cheek without knowing it.

"So she hates humans. I suppose information is information."

"Hey, dudes? Not to interrupt or try to run away to anything, but, could I go out for a while? I ordered some comics and I'd like to get some fresh air." Beast Boy spoke up.

"Are you sure you're feeling up to it? I mean, we _all_ got pretty banged up today." Robin pointed out, unconsciously rubbing a sore arm.

"Yeah." Beast Boy simply replied.

"Okay. But only if you feel up to it." Robin agreed.

"I'd like to check you out before you go out though. You're the only one I have to left to do." Cyborg stopped him.

"Aww. Do I have to?" Beast Boy complained.

"Yes." Cyborg stated.

"Go Beast Boy. We want to make sure you aren't going to collapse on the way there or back." Robin ordered.

"Fine." Beast Boy sighed and went to the med bay with Cyborg.

"Looks like you're just fine 'cept for some minor bruising." Cyborg observed

"Can I go now?" Beast Boy whined as he put his shirt back on.

"Yes. Have a good time and call us if anything happens." Cyborg told him as he got up.

"Yes Mom." Beast Boy joked and flew out the window.

He landed at the edge of the park. It was just past twilight and the comic store had closed by now.

"Great. Well, some fresh air will do me some good." He began walking towards the heart of the empty park. There were plenty of trees and bushes. Most of the trees were fruit trees, and some still had things like apples on them. He was behind a bush that came up to his waste when he heard something moving. Going on alert but remembering it could just be someone like him walking in the park, he crouched down a little and focused his night vision. There was someone in front of him about 5 yards away at an apple tree. It appeared to be female and she was trying to get an apple off of one of the lower branches. Something about her didn't smell right, and this put him on further alert. Then it struck him as she jumped onto the branch with ease: it was the girl they had fought earlier! Quietly changing into a Siberian tiger, he watched for the right moment to pounce. If he could knock her down quick enough, maybe he could knock her out or something before she could fight back.

The girl picked a large red, apple and slid off the branch. She froze and cocked her head for a moment, but then shrugged and took a bite. The wind was blowing from her so what she thought she smelled was just a cat. There were a bunch around, and she had even got a few feral cats to let her pet them. The apple tasted like the sweetest thing she had ever tasted. When she had eaten as much of the apple as she could she tossed the core into a nearby bush. Then she turned slightly away from Beast Boy and, with a roar, he lunged and knocked her down, using his very large paws to pin her shoulders to the ground. He stood snarling above her and he could see a flicker of fear in her eyes before it was gone. After a moment he realized something strange; she wasn't struggling. Sure she had uttered a whimper of pain at first, but other than that she had stayed still and quiet. Then she did something that shocked him stiff: she reached up and slowly began to pet his head. And when she began to scratch it he lost all train of thought and rationality. Tigers can't really purr, but he still uttered a deep resonating growl that was a close to a purr as he could get. She gently pushed her shoulders up and he stepped off them, much to her relief. Now she moved to scratching around his ears and he sat down and rubbed his head into her hands as she sat up. In the back of his mind he was screaming he shouldn't be doing this and to keep his guard up, but the main thought blocking out the part that would make his snap back to the world was this: It feels so good! Continuing to "purr" he didn't realize that she had started talking to him. He understood her perfectly, though something told him she wasn't speaking in English.

"How come you out here?" She asked him. "Tigers don't get to roam free without being put in zoos or shot anymore, which is why it's a little odd that you haven't been noticed yet. Something else about you seems strange too. Never mind that though, I'm just glad you're trusting me. Glandthro." She said softly. He looked up at her with confusion and she started scratching his chin. "That is what I will call you, for that is your name. Glandthro…Fierce Warrior." He pushed his large head into her and she fell back. He put his paws on the other side of her and laid down on her. She grunted in discomfort at his weight, but otherwise kept petting him. Then she laughed.

"The vibrations tickle." She said in another laugh. He turned and licked her face with his rough tongue. "Ouch." She replied quietly. Inside the tiger's mind, Beast Boy's was silently watching this. Only when he was first learning his powers had the animal's mind taken over his, if only a little. Now he watched in awe and shame as something so simple as being petted could force his human mind into the shadows. He also observed with mild embarrassment how affectionate the 650 lb. Siberian tiger was being with his enemy. It was just…weird! Though Beast Boy had to admit, having someone pet him did feel…nice. Not that he was every going to admit that out loud, but his mind was safe. There was some small realization about how mean and rough she had been toward his team, and how gentle and kind she was being to something that could kill her with one swipe of its paw. He suddenly realized he felt something for this girl, no, this young woman. He couldn't tell what, and it wasn't very strong, but there was something. And it had replace any hate or contempt for her. Remembering her feelings of fear and anger towards his team, and now thinking about how she completely let her guard down and trusted his tiger form, something clicked, but it wasn't clear. The last thing he remembered before he fell asleep was her whispering the name "Glandthro" one last time.

Beast Boy awoke towards noon and there was pleasant sunshine streaming through the leaves. At first he though his curtains hadn't been drawn tight enough and that he was in his own bed sleeping. Then as his senses kicked in, he realized there was a draft. And the bed felt hard and prickly. When he opened his eyes, he saw he was not in his room at all. Then a few memories came back to him; going to see about his comic books and it being too late; spotting the girl and pouncing on her; the look in her eyes and--the girl! His head shot up and the rest of the memories came back, along with a mild blush. He looked around slowly, and soon spotted the young woman curled up next to him with his large paw and front leg serving as a makeshift blanket. Before he could think on it anymore, a voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Beast Boy?" Whirling his big head around he saw Robin and the other three standing behind him with very confused and worried faces.

"It's Beast Boy. But is that--" Raven was cut off.

"Shh! If we wake her up she might get away!" Cyborg whispered.

"Beast Boy! Come!" Robin whispered. Even though it made him feel like a common dog, Beast Boy slowly and carefully stood up and walked over, transforming back as he did. When his warm paw had left the body of the girl in black, she had groaned a little, turned over, and curled into a ball. Beast Boy looked over his shoulder at her sadly before catching himself and trying to prepare himself for the impending lecture. Robin saw that the young woman was asleep and quickly went over to arrest her while he could. Cyborg had made some extra tough cuffs, but given what they had seen they weren't sure if they would hold. Robin hadn't moved even three steps when she suddenly awoke with a start, jumped up, and entered a battle stance. Starfire, Raven, Cyborg, and Robin also entered a battle stance and Cyborg was about to fire at her when Beast Boy jumped in front of them.

"No!" He shouted. This caught all of them off guard, and the girl cocked her head to the side after she straightened up. "She doesn't mean any harm!" At this the girl snorted which caught their attention.

"Beast Boy she's a criminal. And I don't even want to think about what you were doing when we found you." Raven said. Beast Boy blushed but stayed firm.

"What did she do that was against the law? When did protecting yourself become illegal?" He retaliated.

"It's not, but intentional harm _is_." Robin informed. Beast Boy couldn't think of anything to say.

"But--"

"No 'buts'." Robin interrupted and began to walk towards his intended vic--, I mean, arrestee. The girl scowled and suddenly leaped into the tree and disappeared. "After her! Don't let he get away!" Robin ordered and they all, including a reluctant Beast Boy, ran off in the direction she went. Raven tried to locate her with her mind powers, but got a terrible headache and reported there was a large mental barrier blocking her senses from finding their criminal. Robin hopped through the trees the best he could, which was pretty good, but they had soon lost her, even though Beast Boy, Starfire, and Raven had taken to the air.

"Damnit!" Robin cussed after an hour of searching without finding so much as a hair.

"Language!" Raven scolded, reminding him about not cursing in front of Starfire so she wouldn't learn bad words.

"Sorry Star." He apologized as they piled back into the T-Car from which they had come.

"It is of the OK." She accepted. She heard plenty of bad words from strangers on the streets, but since her friends didn't want her using them and wouldn't explain what they meant, she did her best to ignore the words. She had been called some very curious words before that had gotten Robin into a /_very/_ bad mood.

"She's not a bad person." Beast Boy mumbled as he sat down on the couch.

"What was that? Don't forget you're still in trouble." Robin crossed his arms and stood in front of Beast Boy.

"I said she's not a bad person." He spoke up. "She's just, I don't know. But I know she's not a bad person." Beast Boy crossed his arms and huffed.

"And what makes you say that?" Raven questioned.

"Well, she, um, what bad person trusts a full grown Siberian tiger snarling inches from their face and then pets it?" Realizing the last part he said, he quickly slapped his hands over his mouth.

"She…pet you?" Cyborg raised an eyebrow and held back a snicker, barely.

"I-I-I mean, um, uh…" A blush spread its way up Beast Boy's neck and onto his face, making him appear to be a Christmas ornament.

"I think it is most wondrous that Beast Boy has found the fellow companion that he may share romantics in." Starfire said happily. Beast Boy blushed so hard it looked like he had been cut open.

"No it's not--" He tried to explain.

"I must go make the traditional Tamaranian Pudding of New Relationships!" Before anybody could grab her and explain otherwise, she had rushed off to make her pudding. Cyborg started laughing.

"Aww! Beast Boy's got a new girlfriend!" He said in between laughs. Even Robin's stoic expression broke for a small second.

"Knock it off! It isn't like that!" Beast Boy protested while trying to quell his blush.

"So what is it?" Robin asked seriously.

"I don't, I don't know." He admitted and hung his head. "It, never mind, I'm not telling you that."

"Not telling us what? Beast Boy, you were with an armed criminal and wouldn't answer your communicator. Do you realize how worried we were knowing she was out there?"

"I just, I can't tell you." Beast Boy glanced up before staring at his shoes once more.

"Why not?" Robin demanded. Raven had decided to got off and stop Starfire from making another dish to destroy their taste buds. She now came back with a defeated looking Starfire.

"It's, I just can't. At least," Robin and Cyborg leaned in, "at least not, not, with everyone around." Another minor blush appeared on his face. He mentally scolded himself for blushing so much.

"OK…well how about if I stay and the others go away? Or we could go somewhere more private?" Robin suggested. He was confused, but wanted to know all the details of his encounter encase something helped him find out about the girl, and whatever had happened was clearly making Beast Boy uncomfortable. _"Wait, he didn't…? No! Of course not! Right?"_

"Yeah, sure." Beast Boy agreed and they went out.

(A/N Well, I think that's it :) Sorry it took so long, but schools SUCKS. I hope you enjoy this new, and 7 pages long, chapter of The Demon Inside Me (TDIM)! Please keep reviewing, it means I'm still noticed!)


	5. Chapter 5

(A/N Well here is the next chapter of TDIM! I hope you guys liked the last chapter :) I don't think I got all that I wanted into that scene with BB and the girl, but I think I did pretty well. I re-did a little bit in the last chapter, mostly just taking out the / surrounding italic words because it kept them this time, and I took out a sentence when BB wakes up from his dream. Other than that nothing changed. So, once again, here is chapter 5!)

Beast Boy and Robin walked down the hall. Beast Boy had decided he wanted to go to his room. Robin agreed and followed him. While Beast Boy was mulling over the conversation that was going to take place and thinking about how he was going to explain himself, Robin was thinking about, well, why they had been together and neither hurt, why Beast Boy was so embarrassed about explaining himself, and if anything had happened. He shook his head to clear these thoughts as they arrived at Beast Boy's bedroom and went in. He sat on his bed while Robin cleared off a chair that was hiding under a pile of clothes and sat down in front of his friend.

"So," He said, wanting to get right to it, "why didn't you answer you communicator for starters?"

"I guess I just fell asleep and didn't hear it." Beast Boy shrugged.

"Okay…that's unusual. I'll have to have Cyborg fix that. Next, why, um, why were you, sleeping on her?" Beast Boy blushed.

"I, uh, I knocked her down and she didn't get up before I fell asleep." Robin nodded.

"How about this, you tell me what happened from when you left to when we found you alright?" Beast Boy sighed and then began.

"I flew out the med bay window and landed at the edge of the park. I realized the comic shop was closed by then and I decided to take a walk." He felt like he was being interrogated for being a suspect in a murder or something. "When I got to the center of the park I heard someone there. At first I thought it was just another person walking in the park, but the scent smelled familiar, and you guys had no reason to be out then. I was behind a bush and saw a silhouette by the apple tree you found us under. When she jumped into the tree easily to get an apple I realized it was the girl from earlier and turned into a tiger. I think she knew I was there, or that _something_ was there, but she went on as usual. When she had finished the apple and turned away from me a little, I pounced. I pinned her down and, well, she didn't really _do_ anything." Robin raised an eyebrow but stayed quiet. "I mean, she grunted in pain, who wouldn't after being shoved to the ground by a full grown Siberian tiger?, but she stayed quiet and didn't move. Then she, well, she reached up and pet my head." A slight blush appeared on his face once more and he stopped for a moment. Robin was about to say something when Beast Boy started speaking again. "It, uh, it felt, good, I guess." The blush was becoming more apparent and he lowered his head to try and hide it. "I mean, nobody's ever, pet me before. And she wasn't afraid of me. Nervous maybe, but not afraid. That said something to me. And then," He took a deep breath and let it out, "then the tiger's mind began to, take over mine."

"It what?" Robin was a little shocked.

"That hasn't happened since I first started using my powers. At first I was angry, but then, since it wasn't doing much harm, I just, let it." He shrugged again and looked up at Robin for a moment. "I stepped off her and she sat up and began to scratch me. Then she started talking to me."

"Talking? What did she say?" Robin interrupted.

"It wasn't English. But I could understand her all the same. I think it was the same language she spoke when I was the python and she told me to let go. She talked about how strange it was to see a tiger outside of a zoo, let alone in a city park and nobody noticing. She said she was glad I was trusting her." Robin lifted up a finger and was about to interrupt again, but Beast Boy stopped him by talking again. "I don't think I was really trusting her, but the tiger was. Then she called me a name. Glandthro I think it was."

"Glandthro?" "Yeah, she said it _was_ my name, and that it meant fierce warrior. I, uh, then I…" He blushed again and it looked like he was having trouble speaking.

"It's okay, BB. You can tell me." Robin put a hand on Beast Boy's shoulder and this seemed to comfort him enough to continue.

"I, well the tiger, pushed her back and then lay across her. You know tigers can't purr right?" He asked. Robin nodded. "Well, it sorta was, ever since she had sat up and scratched me. When I, uh, laid down on her she said the vibrations tickled her." He gave a short laugh. "She laughed too. It was a sweet laugh." He seemed to go off for a moment but then came back. "Anyway, then I, the tiger, uh, licked…her. The last thing I remember before falling asleep was her calling me Glandthro again. And then I woke up to you guys." He sat up and shrugged.

"Are you sure that's all that happened?" Robin pushed.

"Yeah, why? What do you think could've--" His eyes widened in shock and then he blushed like mad. "You sick freak, NO! Why would you think that?" Now it was Robin's turn to blush.

"I don't know, I mean, considering the position we found you in…never mind. Thank you for telling me what happened." He got up to leave, but Beast Boy grabbed his arm.

"You aren't, uh, you aren't going to tell the others about, what I, um, felt, are you?"

"No. I'm just going to tell them the facts. Besides, that's not really important is it?" He winked and Beast Boy smiled and let go. Robin went out to speak to the rest of his team and Beast Boy decided on taking a nap.

Everybody looked up when the common room doors hissed open and their leader walked in.

"How'd it go?" Raven asked in monotone as she looked up from her latest book.

"Yes, we wish to know what was troubling Beast Boy." Starfire floated up with her hand clasped to her chest. Cyborg stood up from the couch as well.

"The store was closed when he got there so he took a walk in the park." Robin began to explain. "He spotted our newest villain picking apples--"

"Whoa, what?" Cyborg interrupted. "A hard core girl like that picking apples in the middle of the night? Something ain't right." He crossed his arms.

"I know. But that's not the point." Robin waved it off. "Anyway, when she turned from him he turned into a tiger and pounced, she pet him--" Again he was interrupted.

"Again, what?" Cyborg asked. Robin sighed and scraped a hand down his face.

"Can I please continue without being interrupted?" He asked impatiently.

"I guess, but I would like to know--" This time Robin stopped Cyborg.

"Beast Boy doesn't want me telling you that, only the facts. Now, something happened between him and the tiger and basically the next thing he remembers is waking up to us."

"That is truly all?" Starfire asked. Robin nodded, glad he left out the part about the tiger taking over, and the embarrassing part about Beast Boy's feelings about the incident.

"I have a feeling that isn't all, then again we know all we need to know, and the rest is personal to him." Raven closed her book and went off to her room to do more research, meditate, and then go to sleep. The others knew she had also just closed the discussion about digging in deeper to the scene. Robin looked at the clock and stretched.

"I'd say it's time for bed. Even though it _is_ almost 3 a.m."

"I too am of the tired." Starfire yawned. "I believe I shall hit the sack? Is that correct?" She asked no one in particular. Robin nodded and smiled.

"I guess I'm goin too." Cyborg stretched his arms over his head and started for the door. "Night y'all."

"C'mon Star." Robin yawned. The couple headed to their own beds as well, but not without a goodnight kiss when nobody was looking. What none of them knew was that, as they were heading back home, a pair of emerald green eyes with red around the iris had watched them from the top of a building with a puzzled look to them, before they too slipped into the darkness.

Morning

Nobody was awake until at least noon because of what had happened the day before and the stress that followed. Even early birds Raven and Robin had slept in longer than usual. Beast Boy, normally a deep sleeper due to his animal DNA and disposition, awoke the last and found everybody had already eaten and was up doing research, watching TV, or doing research.

"I just got here and I'm already bored." He complained as he went to the fridge to get his daily tofu intake.

"You could help us." Robin suggested.

"No way man! You know I don't like sitting around and reading or staring at a computer screen. Unless there's a game on it." He protested.

"You're right." Raven said from her spot by the window with another large book with strange writing on the cover. Everybody stared at her strangely and stopped what they were doing. "You don't like anything that doesn't include mindlessness so you wouldn't be very much help." They sighed and went back to their previous occupation while Beast Boy steamed.

"I am too help! Last night proves it!" He complained.

"Just go back to what you were doing." Raven waved him off, sighed as she tossed the book into a growing pile and grabbed another from the lessening stack next to her.

"Still nothing?" Robin asked as he continued to type on the computer. Cyborg switched off the news and groaned.

"I've searched through almost all my books and the only thing I've found was that small passage about what 'Puratha' meant." Raven said.

"We've been at this since breakfast was over." Cyborg complained. Robin was about to go into 'leader mode' and tell him that they needed to do this, when he spotted the time.

"I guess we could take a break." He sighed.

"That would be most pleasing." Starfire said as she dropped another stack of magazines about weapons and martial arts techniques she had brought in.

"So are we going anywhere?" Beast Boy asked as he chugged the last of his orange juice.

"I don't think that after last time…" Robin started.

"Oh please Friend Robin! It is a most pleasant day and I was wishing to go to the Mall of Shopping." She said the last part a little lower and she twirled a piece of her hair.

"Yeah! C'mon Rob. There's plenty to do there, even a Gothic section where Raven can be alone and it's quiet." Cyborg agreed.

"Sounds good to me." Raven marked her place and closed the book she had been looking through. Everybody stared at their leader.

"Fine! But all of you stay _in_ the mall, and don't wander off without their communicators." He aimed this last part at Beast Boy, but he didn't notice. They cheered, except Raven of course, and set off for the car.

"I want to go to all the lovely clothes stores!"

"I heard they put in an auto shop place."

"I might be able to find some new books to look through."

"Didn't they make the arcade bigger and cooler?"

"I _could_ look at the weapons department to see if they know anything about what we saw." Was some of the conversation as the Titans entered the mall. They all split up to go their separate ways soon enough, however.

Robin asked the clerk if he had seen claws that could be attached to someone's hand and extend on command.

"She didn't even press a button or anything, just aimed and out they came. Something like that?" The clerk said he hadn't, at least not any that could be so easily hidden. Robin thanked him and went to the food court, where they said they'd all meet in an hour.

Cyborg looked through various parts for cars and found one he had needed.

"500 bucks?! Sheesh! I could probably _build_ this for less, and make it better!" He complained.

"Don't like it? Don't buy it!" The clerk said.

"I won't!" Cyborg stormed off. His stomach rumbled and he decided that stopping by the food court so early wouldn't be that bad if he was hungry.

Starfire was flying in this store, out that one, and in between buying everything she got her hands on.

"What about this one? Oh this is so cute! I bet Robin would like this!" Eventually she had too much for even a mighty Tamaranian to carry and decided that if one of her friends were at the food court they could watch her new belongings while she went back.

Raven had found a few magical items that she needed for a couple powerful spells. Most of the things she had seen were fakes, but a couple looked pretty close to the real deal. There was a bookstore towards the back and she headed for it. She stopped halfway, however, because somebody in a dark cloak with the hood up got there first. There were some markings on the cloak, and they looked strangely like fire. Raven couldn't hear the conversation, but from what she saw this person was looking for something that either very few new of, or the clerk didn't want people to know they had it. The cloaked figure pulled out a bill, and according to the clerk's reaction, it was a large bill. They woman behind the counter quickly went into the back of the shop, though she looked very nervous and wary, especially of her customer. She came back after a couple minutes, and Raven had gone a little closer, feeling that she might know the customer, and that it was a bad feeling. Now she was close enough to hear some of the conversation.

"How did you know of this book?" The very nervous clerk asked.

"That's for me to know, not you." The figure was female, but her voice was very low and seemed cautious.

"I still don't think I should sell it to you."

"Then why is this book in a bookstore?" Raven thought the girl must be smiling by the tone in her voice. With a lot of hesitation the old woman handed the book to her customer.

"It costs 700, no less." Without skipping a beat a gloved hand came out of the cloak and handed a couple bills to the old woman.

"Thank you." The figure turned towards Raven, but quickly turned away and walked off. In that brief moment Raven made the connection: It was the very same person they had found with Beast Boy! Raven pulled out her communicator and signaled for help, then she quickly went off after the villain.

Beast Boy was having a lot of fun playing on every game he could afford. He was currently playing Super Racers.

"Move! Road hog! Come one come on! No!" The screen flashed GAME OVER as his car was sent into a wall and exploded. He quickly rummaged through his pockets for more money to use as tokens, but found none. Sighing he decided that he should head to the meeting place by now anyway. He stopped when his communicator made a loud beeping noise, signaling the need for help. Quickly opening it to see who needed help and where they were, he gasped as he saw who. "Raven. I'm on my way!" He said to no one, and swiftly transformed into a hawk and flew off.

Robin had just about fainted when he saw the enormous stack of clothes Starfire had brought for him to look after while she went back for _more_, when both their communicators went off and Cyborg walked in. all of them checked theirs at the same time, and rushed off without a word.

Raven was losing sight of the person more and more frequently, but she knew that if she were to fly after the villain, there would be more of a chance to get caught as there were fewer hiding places. Once again she ducked behind an object, this time another trashcan, as the young woman looked behind her. They were almost to the back of the mall, where less shops and people were. _"If she's going to get away without being seen, it would be back there."_ Raven thought to herself as she continued to follow.

"Where are they?" She whispered to herself. Her target went around a corner where there happened to be a group of teenagers. It was darker back here and there weren't any security cameras, so they had taken advantage of this and smuggled some alcohol and drugs in. they were also carrying weapons like switchblades and brass knuckles incase they were caught…like now.

"Hey! W-who are you?" One particularly drunk and high boy asked the young woman, though he couldn't even see her face as the shadow from her hood hid it. "You come for the party?" He laughed. A couple other boys came over, most of them holding beer bottles or cigarettes.

"Where's your face?" One asked and reached to push back the hood. His hand was quickly slapped away.

"Don't touch me." The girl growled.

"Oh, you wanna play rough huh? Well, let's play." The first boy reached into his back jeans pocket and brought out a switchblade, waving it at the girl. Most of his other buddies did the same, the rest broke their bottles. "Let's dance."

"I don't like dancing, but if it's a fight you want…" She threw off her cloak and extended her claws, "I'm willing." The boys laughed at her.

"Here kitty, kitty!" One taunted. Raven watched this with growing fright. If a fight broke out, she could probably contain everybody quickly, but almost surely someone would get hurt first.

"I'm gonna tear you up little girl." The first teen threatened.

"Is that so? Then try it." The villain taunted. Raven was about to go in there and stop anything before it happened, when the rest of the team found her.

"What's the trouble?" Robin asked. Before he or anybody else could speak, the boys attacked the girl. Swinging her arms to block and attack at the same time, she threw back one boy into the wall, knocking him unconscious.

"Stop the fight!" Robin yelled and the team rushed in. There were about ten teenagers in total that had formed a circle around their intended victim, and even though she jumped and twirled and turned, they managed to scrape her up a little. Raven grabbed three in in energy and held them away from the scrap. Cyborg bear hugged two others, Robin knocked one out, Beast Boy literally bear hugged another, and Starfire had flown one up to a ledge high above the ground. The only one they didn't have was one that had grabbed a pipe to use against the girl. She had been doing okay, until she had stepped in some grease for one of the fry stands, and her smooth metal shoes easily slipped and she fell. The teen attacked her and sent her into a daze when he hit her head. Then he grabbed a switchblade he found on the ground. Before any of the Titans could react, or the girl could move, he had stabbed her in the stomach. She gasped in pain, and kicked him in the chest so hard he almost flew out the window that was two stories up. Raven caught him as he fell, and the other Titans went over to see if the girl was okay, and to collect her. She pulled the knife out of her and threw it against the wall. She tried standing up, but a concussion had been brought on when she was hit and passed out.

"Well this'll make it easier to contain her." Cyborg muttered.

"Starfire, Beast Boy, take these thugs to jail. Cyborg, Raven and I will take care of her." He pointed at the girl whom Cyborg was carefully carrying out. Starfire and Beast Boy nodded and went off to gather the teens. Cyborg had made it halfway to the car with Raven beside him. Robin followed them and went home.

(A/N: Well that's it for chapter 5 of TDIM! Hope you like it! And now that they have the girl in custody, what will happen? I realize the way I had them be able to catch her was, well, lame, but I honestly couldn't think on anything else 0.o Still give me your feedback please!)


	6. Chapter 6

(A/N: Uh, okay I know that fight scene SUCKED, but I couldn't think of anything else and I needed her to go down.Looks away nervously and prays a mob doesn't form I'm probably going to revise it to make it a little better and more sense, heh. Anywho, I'm sick, again, no surprise, so I'll have a little more time to type. Although since my grades are already kinda iffy in some of my classes, going back will also suck. So, I hope I did better on chapter 6 of TDIM! Oh, also, this chapter has some mild cussing in it.)

**THE GIRL'S POV**

"_Beeping. __**Annoying**__ beeping. Uhg, my stomach. Where am I? Ow! Well at least my eyes still work, but that bright light isn't doing anything for me. Wait, __**please**__ don't tell me I'm back at the hospital. That I'm back…there."_ I very carefully opened my eyes enough to see, but not enough that anybody who might be there with me could tell I was awake. Seeing what I could from the position my head was in, I _was_ in a hospital. I didn't see anybody, but that didn't mean someone wasn't there. Ever so slowly I turned my head to the left. Yep, a person. About six feet from the looks. A man, and made of…metal? He didn't _look_ like any of the other robots I've seen. Wait a minute, there's a hole in his chest where the heart would be. _"Ah, shit! How'd I get here? Oh yeah, I was stupid enough to think I could take on those guys, the Titans showed up, I was stabbed, and then I passed out. Man, guess I had less energy than I thought. I mean, look at how I fought? Slow, little precision, and crappy, to say the least. God, I was so stupid. Rare, but still. His back is turned to me. Maybe I could sneak out. I'd have no clue where the exit is, but, if I could get out of this room, I'd have more of a chance at getting away."_ I carefully looked at what I could along my body. _"Hm, my suit must have weakened enough while I was out so they could cut it and bandage me up. Wouldn't have mattered if they did or didn't." _There were sensors, wires, and an IV hooked up to me. _"Goody. It's so bright in here! Even if I __**did**__ manage to get off this bed, I'd probably be blinded. Heh, 'Blinded by the Light,' funny."_ Cyborg chose this moment to turn around and look at his patient. He wrote something down on his clipboard and walked over to the other side of the med bay. There were a couple of instruments on a table, including a new IV bag. He picked up the bag and went back over to the me. Thinking I was still unconscious, he removed the IV, replaced it, and sat down in a chair next to the bed.

"Well it looks like you'll be okay." He smiled, but then he frowned. "Who _are_ you? You show up out of nowhere; take us down, not something easy I might say; buy a book entitled Legends of the Damned; and then wind up here." He shook his head slowly.

" _You __**took**__ my book? Thieves! If you read it…"_ I trailed off because I was getting angry, and the heart monitor started to jump slightly. And that walking traffic light came in. Robin. _"Great. Not __**him.**__ He's lucky I'm weak and strapped down."_ I internally growled.

"How's she doing Cyborg?" Robin asked. He glanced over at the girl with a little anger in his eyes before turning his gaze back to the tower's medic.

"She'll be fine. What's kind of weird though is that she's healing faster than any normal person, and remember when she got stabbed? Barely any reaction. I'm running a test on her blood right now. Maybe that'll say something. Also she has three broken ribs, and the x-ray shows every bone in her body has been broken at least twice. " Cyborg checked his clipboard again.

"Wow. What has she been through? And when you think she's doing better and awake, I'll question her about her actions." Robin crossed his arms.

"_I've got to get out of here now. Before they decide to do tests on me." _They looked over at the heart rate monitor as it sped up quickly.

**NORMAL POV**

The girl leaped up, all the wires, sensors, and the IV pulling out of her, and made a dash for the door.

"Don't let her escape!" Robin cried as he jumped at her. He almost had her feet, but she was too quick. She had almost reached the door when Cyborg tripped her. Before she could get up, he pinned her down.

"No you don't!" He grunted in effort while she still struggled. Robin came over and bent down to help restrain her, but unfortunately one of her thrashing feet connected with his family jewels and he doubled up in pain. Her squirming paid off as Cyborg was left holding onto one of her feet. "Calm down!" He breathed. He was thrown back a little and grabbed his face when her steel clad shoe hit him in the eye. The girl scrambled to her feet and rushed out the door. Cyborg had put a tracker on her however, and with one hand still covering his face, a virtual blueprint of the tower came up, with a purple dot moving quickly down the halls. "She's headed for the bathroom. Beast Boy's taking a shower." Cyborg informed Robin.

"I'll call him." Robin grabbed his communicator and called Beast Boy.

Beast Boy was finished with his shower, but not his goofing off or getting dressed. The last thing he had to put on was a shirt, but he took this time to draw things in the clouded mirror and talk to his reflection.

"You are one sexy beast." He flexed in the mirror and blew kisses at himself. He had grown over the years, as had all of them, and he wasn't as scrawny as he used to be. He wasn't buff or anything like that, but he was well built for his 5' 6" height, and was pretty attractive. His hair had grown slightly longer, but not by much. He still liked to think he was movie star handsome, and that his body was awesome. His communicator went off next to him on the counter. "I wonder what's up." He pressed the button to answer the call and Robin's pained face came on the screen. "Dude, are you okay? You don't look so good."

"Beast Boy, she escaped and is heading your way. Try to restrain her until we can get there, which might be a while." Robin replied.

"She what? I thought she was unconscious." Beast Boy questioned.

"Well she woke up. And hurry, Cyborg's scanners say she's rounding the corner." Robin shut off the communicator and stood up carefully.

"That's one of the reasons I'm glad I'm not a full man anymore." Cyborg chuckled as he put an ice pack on his bruised eye.

"It's not funny! She kicks hard." Robin complained. "Raven and Starfire are out so I hope he can handle her until we can make it down there." Cyborg handed him another ice pack. "Thanks."

Beast Boy put him communicator down and stepped out of the steamy bathroom, only to be almost run down. Quickly realizing this was the girl, he wrapped his arms around her to hold him to her, thinking of nothing else he could do at the moment. She squirmed and twisted, trying to get out of his hold. She even extended her claws and tried to scratch him, but because her arms were pinned down next to her, the most she could do was make small scratches right above his waistband. She tried to kick him too, but she couldn't get balanced enough to swing her leg back because she was too close to him.

"It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you." Beast Boy spoke softly, as one would do to a hurt or frightened animal. In response to this, she tried to bite him. "Hey! Hey, knock it off." He twisted each time she lunged, and because of her position and because of the slant of a human's chest plus the flatness of our mouths, she couldn't sink her teeth in. So she resorted to being a vampire and going for his neck. He swung his head back each time, but she nicked him a couple times. "It's okay. You're okay." He continued to speak to her softly. She finally gave a loud groan of frustration and went limp. Her breathing was quick and her heart rate even faster. "It's okay. Shh, you're alright. I'm not going to hurt you." Beast Boy spoke to her.

"Shet nurk." She rolled her eyes. For convenience, I'm going to post her language in English.

"No, really." Beast Boy replied.

"Why can't you just let me go? I'm no use to you." She wined.

"But you're hurt. We just want to help." He still spoke quietly.

"I don't need your help. I've survived 16 years without you, I can survive one more day." She looked up at him with anger. He saw that her eyes were a beautiful emerald green, and that there was a thin ring of red around the iris.

"I think we've figured that out." He chuckled lightly. "But it's our job, and you're in trouble."

"Boohoo. Damnit, let go!" She struggled again, but not nearly as long. In exhaustion, her head fell onto his chest. Her chest hitched before she was silent again.

"Why are you afraid of us?" Beast Boy asked.

"None of your business." She spat.

"Okay. We never wanted to hurt you. And we don't now." He kept trying to reassure her. She looked up at him again with contempt, then she dropped her gaze.

"I know. I knew then after Robin first said it." She said quietly.

"So why did you attack us?" She sighed.

"Because I can't trust you." Beast Boy was shocked.

"Yes you can." He released one arm to lift her face up to his. "Yes. You can. The others may think you need to go to jail for harming us, but I understand and disagree."

"Ha. Give me one reason to believe you and care." She narrowed her eyes.

"The only thing I can give you is my word. Whether you believe me or not is up to you." She looked away again and bit her lower lip.

"Maybe you aren't so bad after all." He saw her look at his neck. The nicks had began bleeding, leaving a trail down his shoulder. Then she did something that sent electricity down his spine, shocked him stiff, and sent his heart racing. She began to lick up the blood. Her tongue was rough like a cat's, but she was being very gentle. She reached his neck and he felt his knees go weak for a moment. She leaned back to look at him, and confusion took over her face.

"I'm sorry, did I do something wrong?" Beast Boy snapped back to normal, though there was a large blush on his face.

"Uh, not-not really. But, um, that kind of thing isn't, uh, normal, around here."

"Oh. Well, I just figured that since I was wrong about you, and injured you when I shouldn't have, I should try and fix it. They way I could at the moment at least." She referred to him still holding her tightly. Then she yawned, and because she couldn't raise a hand to cover her mouth, turned away.

"You have fangs?" Beast Boy remarked.

"Hm? Oh, yeah."

"Um, can I see them again? To compare." Beast Boy asked.

"Okay?" She opened her mouth wide enough to let Beast Boy see her fangs.

"How long are they?" Beast Boy asked.

"Two centimeters. They'd actually be too long for me to close my mouth if I didn't file them every now and then." The girl replied.

"Interesting."

"What did you mean when you said compare?"

"You haven't seen? I have fangs too. Smaller, but still fangs." He smiled toothily to show off his fangs. She smiled a little. She turned away to yawn again.

"Are you tired? Because you're yawing a lot."

"Mm hmm." She nodded sleepily. "A week without proper sleep will do that." She muttered.

"I can bring you back to med bay." Beast Boy suggested. She was suddenly awake and looked frightened.

"No! Please no."

"Uh, okay. What about, hmm, I doubt you'd like to sleep in my room, so how about the couch in the common room?"

"That sounds fine. What about the others seeing me there though? I can't fight too much longer." She shook her head sadly.

"I'll make sure they leave you alone." Beast Boy smiled. She smiled back. Her set her down carefully, as he had been holding her off the ground a little, and released his arms. She promptly fell down.

"Sorry." She remarked, trying to get up with little success.

"Why are you sorry? I'm the one at fault." He bent down to help her up.

"Something I think you should know, I'm seeing two of you." Beast Boy sighed.

"You're more tired than I thought. Here, I'll carry you." She looked at him like he had grown two heads, then sighed in defeat.

"Okay. Just be careful with my back." He nodded and gently picked her up bridal style and walked towards the common room. "Beast Boy?" He looked down at her. "Thank you." She fell asleep before they were halfway to the common room.

Beast Boy smiled when he covered her up with a spare blanket. He could tell something was troubling her, but at the moment she just looked at peace. He resisted the urge to lean down and kiss her, telling himself that it wasn't right. She was still a criminal, though he thought for the wrong reasons. Then he noticed something on the back of her head. It was a tracker. Frowning, he pulled it off and stepped on it. Then he realized he was still shirtless, and blushed a little.

"The tracker's gone!" Cyborg shouted. They were at the bathroom now, having gotten over the pain. Robin was limping slightly, but otherwise fine.

"What? How? Where was it last?" Robin asked.

"The common room. Where's Beast Boy?" They looked around and saw that his shirt and communicator was still in the bathroom.

"I don't know. The communicator is the tracker, and since it's here, what about the common room? That's where the girl's tracker last said she was." Cyborg suggested.

"Good idea. Let's go. I just hope the girls get back soon. We might need them." They set off.

Beast Boy had grabbed something to eat and a comic book and sat down on the love seat next to the couch. He watched her breathe for a while, and then realized he hadn't asked her name. _"I'll have to do it when she wakes up. I wonder where Raven and Starfire are."_

"Starfire, for the last time, I don't need knew clothes." Raven complained. They had been at the mall for hours. Raven had gone to do more research about the book, Starfire went for shopping and dragged Raven into it…again.

"But Raven, surely you must need _something_." Starfire pleaded.

"I came here to ask about that book, not try on clothes." She grumbled. But when she saw the pleading look on Starfire's face, she gave in. "Fine. But only one outfit."

"Yes! Come with me Raven, I know the perfect one." And off she dragged the dark goddess.

Robin and Cyborg were coming up on the common room.

"What should we expect to see? Beast Boy tied up, killed, things broken?" Cyborg asked.

"Expect the unexpected." Robin said simply before opening the doors. They were shocked by what they saw.

"Well, that certainly is the unexpected." Cyborg remarked. They came upon the site of Beast Boy reading a comic book and eating some fried tofu, and the girl curled up on the couch fast asleep. Beast Boy looked up when the doors opened and glared at them.

"If you wake her up you'll regret it." He threatened.

"You aren't hurt?" Cyborg whispered as they came over.

"Only a little." Beast Boy shrugged.

"Where? Show me." Robin demanded. Beast Boy sighed and turned his head, showing the small bite marks. "Those look like snake bites." Robin said.

"What do you want?" Beast Boy turned his head sharply.

"We were looking for her, and then you. Your communicator was still in the bathroom, as well as your shirt." Cyborg handed them both to Beast Boy.

"Thanks."

"What, um, what is she doing?" Cyborg asked, motioning to the sleeping girl.

"What does it look like she's doing?" Beast Boy was annoyed.

"She's sleeping, but, uh,"

"I think what Cyborg's trying to say is why is she sleeping on the couch, why are you sitting here, and what happened between you two?" Robin clarified.

"I'm making sure she isn't disturbed. She passed out on me. As for what happened between us, none of your business. Just know that I calmed her down." Robin was about to protest but Beast Boy raised a hand. "That's it. Now, if you have no business here I suggest you go away and leave us alone." He picked his comic book back up and began to read.

"Beast Boy I don't approve of your attitude." Robin said.

"Shut up." The girl said from the couch. This made all of them jump a little, Cyborg and Robin more than Beast Boy. She lifted herself up to turn over and went back to sleep. Robin started to go over to the couch when Beast Boy stood up and grabbed his arm.

"Don't."

"Beast Boy--" Robin started.

"Maybe we should just let her sleep. She might be a little more cooperative once she's had some rest." Cyborg interrupted.

"Fine. But I want to speak to her first." Robin shook free and strode over to the front of the couch. When he stood in front of the girl she opened one eye.

"Wark?" She grumbled.

"Mind translating?" Robin asked Beast Boy. He sighed.

"She asked you 'what.'" Robin nodded and turned back to the girl, who had closed her eyes again.

"I want to talk to you." She didn't do anything for a moment, and then glared at him.

"And I want to go to sleep."

" 'And I want to go to sleep.'" Beast Boy translated.

"I want some answers." Robin demanded.

"I want my belt." She smirked. Beast Boy translated. Robin sighed. "Look, I may be exhausted, but I only need a few minutes of sleep before I have enough energy to kick your ass up and down this state." She leaned up on her elbow. Beast Boy started laughing, but stopped and translated when Robin glared at him.

"Oh? And how is that?" Robin sat down on the coffee table in front of the couch.

"My genes." She smiled. "And that's all I'm saying."

"Why did you attack us even though we said we didn't want to hurt you?"

"I didn't trust you. And I don't now."

"Intentional harm is illegal. I'll have to take you to jail."

"So? You think I'd stay there? Honestly, if I'm this bad normally, think about what damage I could cause when I'm in captivity." She grinned. It was a dangerous grin, a grin that said the owner was testing you, waiting for your reaction. And the tone of voice she had used, it was very familiar. "What are you staring at?"

"Oh, sorry. I was just thinking." He said absently, still thinking about who she reminded him of. She shrugged and laid back down. Robin was about to ask more question when the girls walked in.

"How is everything--" Raven stopped when she saw Robin talking to the girl on the couch. "What's going on?"

"Is everything of the okay friends?" Starfire dropped her bags.

"Everything's fine girls. We were just having a little chat." Cyborg told them.

"Okay…" Raven said slowly. She didn't look away from the girl, who was now looking at her. "You're sure everything's fine?" Robin nodded.

"How long is it until Halloween?" The girl asked.

"Um, 12 days I think." Beast Boy replied.

"What'd she ask?" Cyborg asked.

"She wanted to know how long it was until Halloween."

"Why?" Raven asked cautiously. There was a glint in the girl's eyes for a moment.

"Nothing special." Beast Boy translated. She laid back down and appeared to go to sleep.

"Fine. But we're talking more when you wake up." Robin stood up and almost went after her when she stuck a hand out and made the 'blah blah blah' motion. They all went into the kitchen to talk things over, when they were interrupted by the girl suddenly jumping up.

"Where's my belt?" She demanded.

"She wants to know where her belt is." Beast Boy told them.

"I'm not telling." Robin told her. "That thing is full of weapons and strange items."

"So is yours. I need something from it." Beast Boy translated with a snicker.

"No. you've done enough harm, we don't need you doing something else with help from something in that belt."

"Fine. But unless you want something bad to happen…" She trailed off hoping he'd get the point.

"Like what?" Robin asked.

"Just tell me where it is or get it for me. What I want isn't any harm. Unless you're a rat or something."

"Is it poison?" Robin asked.

"No."

"Why do you need it?"

"I have frequent nightmares. It makes sure I don't dream."

"No dreams? At all?" Cyborg asked.

"But dreams are a thing to love!" Starfire protested.

"Not mine." She shook her head sadly. Robin sighed.

"What does it look like?"

"It's a black film bottle in the tenth pocket on the right." He nodded and went off to get the belt.

"How come you have frequent nightmares?" Raven asked.

"My business." The girl snapped.

"I forgot to ask you something earlier." Beast Boy said.

"Yes?"

"What's your name?" All the Titans looked at her, waiting for an answer.

"I have many names."

"Uh, okay, well what are you called the most? Or what do you like better?"

"Shadow Hunter." She said.

"Cool. Is that because you hunt shadows or something?" Cyborg asked. She shook her head and then smiled a cruel smile.

"It's because I hunt _in_ the shadows." Everybody froze.

"Uh, okay then." Cyborg stepped backwards.

"I think it most joyous we now have a name with which we can call you!" Starfire bubbled. Shadow Hunter's eye twitched.

"Is she always like that?" She pointed at Starfire. They nodded after Beast Boy translated. Shadow Hunter pinched the bridge of her nose and squinted her eyes. "Oh dear god." Robin came back in with the film bottle.

"This it?" She nodded and he tossed it to her.

"Oh, by the way, you can call me Shadow for short." Shadow opened the bottle, shook out two items, and swallowed them. Then she looked down at herself, apparently wanting to put the bottle back in her belt, and noticed the bandage. She extended one claw and sliced the bandage.

"Why'd you do that?" Cyborg asked. Then he noticed that there was only a small scar left where the wound had been. Then something happened that made everybody confused and slightly freaked. Both ends of her cut suit began to stretch until they connected and formed back together. Her suit looked like it had never been cut. Shadow smiled and the bottle disappeared into the side of her suit, though no pocket seemed to have opened.

"How? What? Huh?" Beast Boy stammered.

"Goodnight." Shadow laid back onto the couch and went to sleep. The Titans decided that they would take turns keeping watch until morning when they could talk to her again. Beast Boy volunteered first. Robin nodded and everyone else went to bed. Beast Boy took up his spot that he was in earlier and began reading his comic.

"Goodnight Shadow." He said before settling in for his shift. The sun was setting, and he thought the light looked perfect on her. It made her glow.

(A/N: There it is! My character finally has a name. I had actually figured it out a LONG time ago, but since Shadow doesn't like disclosing information easily (unless she's very sleepy and needs something) I though I would make you guys wait a little bit ;) The rest of her story will come out piece by piece too over time. And I put in a little fluff between BB and Shad. Yes, she had many nicknames even for her nicknames lol. 0.o I just looked up Shad, because it didn't say it was wrong, and it's a type of fish XD. I'm really sick right now…again…so I'll have a little more time to write, though my internet provider is claiming they didn't get the bill. sighs)


	7. Chapter 7

(A/N: They got the bill and we now have internet, although it has a mind of its own . Also, yes my character was sort of OOC if any of you caught that or was wondering. I'm also going to tie up a few more loose ends I forgot about…idiot I am when healthy I am not. I got that from Beast Boy's Swivel Chair in the story Muahaha. It's really funny and there is a part where Beast Boy talks backwards to Raven. I can even remember the dialogue, well part of it: BB- "Backwards I will talk until kill me you will want to." Rae- "I already want to!" And I'm rambling. Anywho, here is chapter 7! I shall sucketh.)

The night had gone by and the sun was rising. Robin and Cyborg had discussed putting Shadow in a steel cage until they could figure out what to do with her. After all, she was still a criminal and very dangerous. Starfire had grown worried when she began to growl in her sleep and seemed very troubled. Robin scolded her lightly about going to get him instead of calling him on the communicator, but they soon figured out she was just having a dream despite her pills. He had to admit though, it was unnerving to hear her. Raven was the last on duty since she got up around sunrise anyway. The sun came up around 6:30 now since it was heading towards winter. Shadow was sitting by the window and staring out at the sunrise with a strange expression hidden beneath her stoic face. Raven thought it odd, very odd actually, that as soon as the clock showed 5 a.m., she awoke like she had just shut her eyes. After asking permission, she had gone over to the window. Towards noon every Titans had filed in, to see Raven reading a book and Shadow still by the window.

"She's been there since five in the morning?" Cyborg asked disbelievingly. Raven nodded.

"And she woke up at five on the dot? Just like that?" Robin snapped his fingers. Again Raven nodded. Robin shook his head and looked over at her. "I still don't like that she's wondering around free." He crossed his arms.

"Why? She isn't really doing any harm. She's just been sitting by the window all morning." Beast Boy protested.

"Which is why I take even greater suspicion. And she's dangerous. We can't trust her." Robin said. Beast Boy mumbled something under his breath. "What was that?"

"I said that if we don't trust her she'll never trust us." He clarified.

"Why are you sticking up for her all the time?" Cyborg questioned. Beast Boy turned a lighter shade of green.

"I, uh, well we've got things in common. And if I don't who will?" He glared at Robin. Robin was about to speak when he was interrupted.

"Don't." Shadow spoke.

"Don't what?" Cyborg asked.

"Stick up for me. I'm not worth it and don't deserve it. I'll stick up for myself. And you'll never get me in that cage. Or at least keep me in it." There was a hint of a smile in her tone, but her voice stayed the same; calm, quiet, devoid of emotion most of the time.

"How did you--" Robin started.

"There are thousands of things about me you may never know. Let it stay that way."

"Look," Robin started walking over to her, "Whether you like it or not, you're in big trouble."

"Ha! You call this big trouble? You have no idea what kind of trouble I've been in before, the messes I've created, the jams I've gotten out of." Her face turned into that of one who is recalling unpleasant memories before going back to normal.

"Would you care to explain some of that then?"

"No." She said simply.

"Robin." Raven called. She had gone to the kitchen for more privacy. He walked over to her.

"What is it?"

"I picked up that cloak she had on yesterday at the mall. I couldn't get any information about the book out of the old lady though, and there's no mention of it on any records." Robin raised an eyebrow. "But I can determine that it's very, very old. Which is odd because it speaks of creatures only recently heard of, like Trigon." She finished a little quietly.

"Really? That certainly is strange. What about her cloak? Anything special?"

"Other than strange patterns on it that seem to be fire, nothing." Robin nodded.

"Thank you Raven." She went off. They were all startled by a sudden loud rumbling.

"Heh. Sorry guys." Cyborg said while holding his stomach. "Nobody got up to make breakfast I guess."

"How about you whip something up for us Cy?" Robin suggested. None of them had really eaten since the day before.

"Should I make enough for five or…six?" He nodded at Shadow who hadn't really moved from her spot.

"I don't think--"

"At least see if she is hungry Robin." Starfire said. He sighed.

"Fine." Robin said, turning to face Shadow. "Hey! Wait, we don't know her name." Robin turned back to the others.

"Actually, she said to call her Shadow Hunter or Shadow while you were getting her pills." Raven informed.

"Oh. Shadow Hunter?" He turned back to her.

"What?"

"Are you hungry?" Robin said somewhat reluctantly. He didn't like her at all, and disliked even more the fact that his teammates were being somewhat hospitable towards her.

"No." She snapped.

"Are you sure?" Beast Boy asked.

"Yes." She replied shortly.

"So you're going to sit over there by the window_ all_ day?" Beast Boy was trying to coax her over to eat something. She had even said herself she hadn't really eaten in a week.

"Well," She leaned back and put her hand to her chin as mock thought, "I would much rather be outside enjoying my hard earned freedom, but sitting two inches from it separated by a see-through barrier will do just _fine._" The sarcasm was dripping from her words.

"Okay. Have it your way." He shrugged. "Five it is." Cyborg nodded and went to work. Within 15 minutes everything was prepared. Beast Boy had to make his tofu portion, but otherwise everything was set for lunch. Starfire, Cyborg, and Beast Boy called over to Shadow a couple of times during the meal to see if she had changed her mind. No surprise, she hadn't. It was Robin's turn to do the dishes, so when everyone was done he started. Cyborg took this opportunity to try and talk to Shadow about something important while "Mr. Ego" wasn't there to interfere.

"Hey Shadow?" He sat down in the sofa close to the window. There was a ledge attached to the window and wall so that people could sit on it and lean against the wall without having to sit on the floor. Raven sat here frequently when she was meditating in the early morning.

"Yes?"

"I'd like to do another exam on you, to see how things are going." He said.

"Medical exam?" She questioned. He nodded.

"No."

"But--"

"I said no. I'm fine and I don't need technology to tell me that. If you haven't noticed already, I'm not like everybody else. Though neither are any of you." She remarked.

"I know, but what I saw from the X-rays and tests worries me. Look, I know Robin isn't exactly pleased that we're being nice to you, but from what Beast Boy and yourself have told us, I don't think you should go to jail or be in trouble." She scowled.

"What you think or feel about me means nothing." Cyborg was taken aback. "I'm not somebody that can be easily persuaded or convinced. I don't care about any of you in the least, hell, I want to _kill_ Robin for what he is, and nothing you or anybody else can change that. Deal with it. The only thing you could do for me at this point is give me back my book, belt, and let me go." Cyborg sighed, but nodded in understanding. She was like Raven in many ways, and Cyborg had been around Raven enough to get a decent idea about how she worked.

"I'm afraid we can't do that. At least not yet." She nodded. "I really want to do another check up on you though." She sighed and began to think.

"What do I get in return, since this is something I really don't want to do?"

"Uh, well, what do you want? Other than the three things you've already mentioned." He added quickly. She muttered something that sounded like 'damn' and thought again. Only now did he realize that she had been speaking in English, not that other language only Beast Boy knew. Well, somewhat knew. He had stumbled more than a few times when translating.

"How about a shower?" She asked quietly. "Ah, crap. Never mind."

"Why?"

"I don't have any extra clothes and this thing isn't exactly new." She pulled at the suit at her arm and it stretched up, and slowly fell back.

"We could probably find something for you to wear. Whether you like it or not depends, but I'm sure Starfire might have something. And can I ask you a question? Just out of curiosity."

"What?" Cyborg smiled a little.

"What is your suit made of? Like, what makes it form back together at times, not at others, and be so flexible?"

"I'm not entirely sure." His face fell. "I think it's a mix between rubber, leather, and some chemical to make it respond to certain thoughts."

"Certain thoughts?" Cyborg tilted his head in confusion. Shadow nodded.

"Remember last night when I took off the bandage and then this formed back together? And before when you had to cut it?" He nodded. "Normally it wouldn't have even ripped for the fate of the earth unless I told it, er, thought it. I guess since it was covering an injury the suit weakened enough in that area for you to help heal it."

"Very interesting." Cyborg mused. "So." He stood up quickly. "Shall I go see if one of us has something for you to wear? Uh," He turned his face away to hide a slight blush, "you don't need, um, undergarments, do you?"

"Huh? Oh, no. I'm good. Uh, um," She seemed to be deep in thought, like when making a difficult decision.

"Hm?" She finally looked up at him with the smallest ghost of a smile.

"Thanks." He smiled back.

"No prob." Cyborg walked off to ask the others about the situation. Shadow turned back to the window. Robin was washing the last of the dishes, Raven had gone to her room, Starfire was talking about her trip to the mall yesterday, and Beast Boy had gone to play some video games.

"Hey guys?" Cyborg asked as he walked up to them. "Actually just Starfire right now."

"Yes Friend Cyborg?" Starfire floated over to him. "How may I be of assistance?" Cyborg explained about his little chat with Shadow and how she would need a shirt and pants or something. "I am sure I can find something!" She raced out of the door to her room.

"What was that about?" Robin asked as he stacked the rest of the dishes to dry.

"Shadow wants a shower in exchange for letting me examine her and she doesn't have any extra clothes." Cyborg remarked. Robin looked unhappy at this, and was about to speak his mind when Starfire flew back in.

"Would it be of the okay to bring Shadow with me so I may get a better estimate of her size?" She asked.

"No."

"Sure." Robin and Cyborg said at the same time. "Why not?" Cyborg asked.

"Why yes? She's a dangerous criminal and should not be treated as a guest." Robin declared.

"She is still has the right to be treated as a person." Starfire countered.

"But--" Robin started.

"She's right you know." Cyborg said.

"Fine." He huffed. "But you go with her incase Shadow tries anything." Cyborg nodded and, after speaking to Shadow, all three headed for Starfire's room.

"No. No way in _Hell_ am I going in _there_." Shadow refused to go into Starfire's room as soon as the door opened.

"Why not?" Cyborg asked.

"Is something of the matter?" Starfire asked politely.

"I have an issue with pink. As do most sensible girls. And your room is pretty much pink." Cyborg restrained a laugh. Raven didn't like pink either, but over the years she had grown to tolerate Starfire's room.

"Well, you're going to have to come in if you want to try and find some temporary clothes." Cyborg smirked. The scowl remained for a moment before Shadow gave in and very reluctantly went into the brightly decorated room. She sat down on the bed with her arms crossed.

"I believe I shall stay away from my pink clothing as you have expressed your dislike for it." Starfire asked as she went over to her closet. She began tossing multi-colored clothes onto Shadow, and by the time she was done with both her closet and her drawers, the poor girl was completely buried. Even Cyborg had gotten a good handful.

"Jeez girl! You've got _way_ too many clothes." He complained. Muffled shouts could be heard form the larger pile on the bed, and after some help from the two Titans and a lot of struggling from Shadow, she burst through the huge pile of clothes.

"I am most sorry." Starfire apologized. Shadow gave a weak glare of irritation at her before beginning to look through the clothes.

"I think I found something in here that looked okay. Though it's kind of hard to tell where it went." Starfire giggled. After a few minutes of searching, Shadow finally decided on a long-sleeve, plain blue sweater and a pair of red sweat pants.

"I'll show you the bathroom." Cyborg led Shadow down the hallways until they reached said room. "Here it is." He opened the door.

"I remember being here before." Shadow mused.

"Yeah, when you escaped the sick bay by kicking me in the face and Robin down below." He chuckled at this last part, and a small smile appeared on her face.

"That was fun. And the medical room is down this hallway, left down the one connecting, right again three quarters down, and the third door on the left." She stated simply. Cyborg stared at her with his jaw hung. Finally he shook himself back to this world, though shock was still apparent on his face.

"How did you know that? I mean, how did you just…say it?"

"I have a very good memory."

"Wow. Even more reason for me to want to examine you." She gave him a look as if to say 'what is with you and wanting to examine me?' and then stepped into the bathroom and shut the door.

The hot water felt wonderful on her tired and achy body. She had barely turned the cold faucet on, and the water was almost scalding. But at the moment she didn't care. Shadow remembered that she didn't have any shampoo or soap with her, so she used the fullest bottle and smallest bar. When she was done with the initial shower, she turned the water even hotter and let it relax away the tension in her muscles and mind. Her worries washed down the drain, and all she could think about was how good it felt. After a while she decided she should get out before the water ran cold, though she got out reluctantly. Shadow dried off and got dressed, wondering how they were going to react when they found out the bathroom was so steamy it was hard to see in. _"Heh. Well at least the steam pretty much cleaned my suit, so I can put that back on later. It's actually sad that I feel comfortable in that symbol of all my troubles."_ She slowly opened the door and saw that Cyborg had been waiting for her. He had actually fallen asleep while leaning against the wall. He woke up with a snort at the sound of the door opening.

"Huh? Wha? Oh. Better?" She nodded. "Damn girl!" He cried when he saw all the steam. "Are you sure you didn't burn yourself?" She just shrugged. Then he seemed to spot something on her face, because his brows furrowed and he leaned in closer. She swiftly jerked her head away to hide her face, and pulled her hands into the sleeves. "I'd like to look at you know if that's okay." Shadow sighed and began to follow him, but not before she shook her hair down to hide her face.

"Where'd Shadow and Cyborg go?" Beast Boy asked when Starfire came back in and he noticed the other two were gone.

"Shadow asked for a shower in exchange that Cyborg wanted to make sure she was doing okay physically." Robin explained.

"And he asked me to find some clothes for her as she does not have any of her own." Starfire added.

"Oh. And Raven's still in her room?" Both of them nodded. Beast Boy shrugged and went back to the TV; he had given up on winning a video game sometime ago.

"Okay, just sit up here please." Shadow hopped up onto one of the beds.

"Why are you so intent on doing this?" She asked.

"I'm the Tower's medic, and over the years I've kind of gotten into the habit of making sure my friends were OK if something happened or didn't look right. Sorry, but you didn't look good anyway the last time I looked you over." Cyborg rubbed the back of his neck nervously before going to get a stethoscope. Shadow squealed when he placed it under her shirt and on her back. "Sorry, forgot to warm it up. Okay, take a deep breath please." She took a very deep breath, deeper than most. He moved it to the other lung. "Again." She repeated the process. "Large lung capacity." He mumbled as he wrote it on a clipboard nearby. " 'Kay, I'm going to look at your eyes now." Shadow stiffened slightly when he came back with the pen light. She turned her head away. "Shadow? You promised."

"I did no such thing." She replied arrogantly, though there was obvious fear and uncertainty in her voice. Cyborg huffed. "Shadow…" He spoke as though to a small child who was being difficult. "Fine. But don't make a big deal about it." She turned her face back towards him.

"A big deal about what-oh my god!" He cried with shock when she pulled her hair out of her eyes. Her face was covered in bruises and cuts, particularly one long scar running from the top of her left eye and trailing down to the middle of her cheek. He then saw that there were scars and marks on what he could see of her hands too. Now get understood why she only chose the long-sleeved sweater and sweatpants, instead of just a shirt and pants: She probably had scars and marks all over her. He also saw that her ears were elfish, though this didn't really matter to him right now. "How come we didn't see this before?" He asked.

"Cover-up. It's also why my skin was really pale." Cyborg now realized that her skin was more pink than before.

"These aren't, aren't from, _us_, are they?" He asked cautiously. She shook her head.

"Who did this to you?" He demanded. She narrowed her eyes sharply. "None of your concern." She hissed.

"There are more aren't there?" He said quietly. She nodded sadly. "I need to see them."

"What?"

"I need to see them. Trust me, it's important."

"I'm not sure--"

"Shadow, you are technically being held captive by the Titans, and for legal reasons are required to obey what we say." He crossed his arms, and recoiled a little at the look she gave him, especially when he said 'obey'." She sighed heavily, so heavily in fact that it came out more of a snarl than a sigh. Then she proceeded to take off her shirt, revealing her black bra. The stab wound scar was still there, but barely visible by now. Aside from a few marks that looked to be hand prints and scratch marks, her front was fine. But when she pulled her hair away from her back and told him not to touch her, he knew it was serious. Cyborg walked around the bed so he could see her back, and nearly fainted, screamed in rage, and threw up all at the same time. There were multiple scars, some looked very recent, that tracked across her back. He couldn't think of anything that could make such long and deep lash marks, so he called in Robin.

"Another boy looking at me topless? Joy."

"I'm sorry, but I need him to see this. And since you seem intent on not telling me anything, he might be the only one who knows how these were made." Robin came in, blushed, and turned away.

"And, _what_ did you need me for?" He asked. Shadow crossed her arms and huffed.

"I hate both of you so much right now."

"I know it's awkward Rob, but I really need you to see this." Cyborg told him. Robin reluctantly turned back around, though he put up an hand to shield his vision, and went over to Cyborg.

"What's wrong?" Cyborg pointed and Robin went pale.

"She's got multiple scars and bruising on her face and hands too." Cyborg recalled. "I don't know what could have caused this kind of damage though, and Shady here won't say."

"Shady?" Shadow remarked. Robin took off a glove and reached out and touched one of the marks very gently. Shadow screamed in pain and leaped off the bed. She grabbed her shirt and put it on.

"We're done here." She growled and walked towards the door.

"Shadow stop." Robin commanded. Shadow did, though she hesitated. "This is serious. Who did this?"

"It's none of your concern." She turned around to glare at them.

"Yes it is. Please tell me."

"You might not even know who I was talking about."

"Try me. And it doesn't matter." After a moment's thought, she finally gave in.

"Fine. Have you ever heard of a guy called Slade?"

(A/N: Muahahahaha!! I just know you guys are going to be super pissed at me, but the plot thought of months ago is finally coming into effect! Yes, a twist, and a large one at that :) They will find out what caused those deep scars on her back soon, and in the next chapter you will learn more about her history and why she is the way she is. I warn you though, Shadow isn't the talkative type. Please R&R!)


	8. Chapter 8

(A/N: Well here is chapter 8! I'm getting more fans of my story :) Um, wow I can't think of anything else to say. Anywho, enjoy!)

Both Titans were speechless and turned white, their eyes as wide as dinner plates.

"I'm guessing you've heard of him." Shadow said. This brought them back to reality, though their appearance didn't change.

"You could say that again." Cyborg mumbled. Robin narrowed his eyes.

"I want to know everything." He demanded.

"I'm sorry, your request has been denied." Shadow replied.

"Shadow--"

"NO!" She ran out of the room before either teen could grab her.

"I want to talk to Raven, maybe she could convince Shadow to let her heal the wounds." Robin said and walked out to find Raven. "Keep an eye on where Shadow goes." He called to Cyborg over his shoulder. Cyborg nodded and checked his scanner for her location. She seemed to be going in a random direction, but she paused at the end of a hallway.

"The Evidence Room! She must be looking for her belt." Cyborg quickly rushed out of the med bay and in the direction of the Evidence Room. His scanner showed that she had entered the room and was looking around. Only Robin knew where her belt was.

Robin made it to Raven's room and knocked on her door. "Raven? I need to talk to you." After a moment her door opened and Raven stepped out.

"Yes?" She asked.

"I have a favor to ask of you."

"What is it?"

"We discovered a numerous amount of scars on Shadow, mainly on her back. They seem to be very painful and I was wondering if you wouldn't mind healing them."

"I thought she was supposed to be treated as a criminal, not a guest." Raven leaned against the doorframe and crossed her arms.

"Uh, I was just--"

"Having a change of heart?" She raised an eyebrow. He frowned at her.

"If you don't want to do it--"

"I doubt she'll let me anyway. What kind of marks?" She asked.

"Bruises and cuts. On her back there were deep lash marks that I think came from a whip."

"A whip?"

"A bullwhip by the looks and depth."

"Wow. Hey, where did you put her book? I wanted to see if I could find out anything I might have missed."

"I put it in the Evidence Room." Robin said.

Shadow entered the room labeled Evidence Room. It seemed as right a place as any to look for her book and belt. Maybe her sword case too. After looking around for a little bit, she spied her book towards the back of the large room.

Cyborg saw that she had looked around a little, then ran towards the back of the room. _"She found her book. Oh, crap! I think her sword case is there too."_ His scanners showed her coming out of the room quickly, and then heading down the connecting hallway. "That's where the bedrooms are." He mused. Cyborg made it to the Evidence Room and went down the hall Shadow had minutes earlier.

Beast Boy was headed to his room to take an afternoon nap. Starfire had gone to find Robin, and he had grown bored quickly with nobody around. His room was actually in a different hallway with Raven's, but both were intersected for easy access. He heard swift footsteps coming from the other hallway that held Robin's, Starfire's, and Cyborg's bedrooms. He decided to check it out and ask how things have been going. When he rounded the corner he was surprised to see Shadow standing in front of Robin's room. She stared at the electronic keypad for a moment before scowling and backing up to the other side of the hallway.

"Hey Shadow!" Beast Boy called as he started to go forward, but he stopped when he realized what she was about to do. "Wait! Don't!" He was too late though because she ran forward and slammed into the door with all of her weight, causing it to dent a little. Stumbling backwards she turned sideways. Beast Boy turned into a hawk to get down there further and stop her from destroying the door. He had almost reached her when she leaned back with her foot raised and kicked as hard as she could. Given she wasn't wearing shoes a frown of pain claimed her face, but the door fell in just the same. Beast Boy transformed back into himself and ran into the room after her. "What are you doing?!" Shadow ignored him and walked over to Robin's bed where, sure enough, her belt laid, as well as everything that had come out of it. Quickly picking up the numerous items and putting them back into their rightful place, as well as a wickedly curved and jagged knife that she put into a side pocket, Shadow picked up her belt. "Shadow stop. What's going on?"

"Leave me alone snot rag." She snarled at him. She attempted to walk out but Beast Boy blocked her path. Her hands were full holding her sword case, book, and belt, but she put these down on the bed. He figured this meant she was getting ready for a fight.

"I don't want to fight you. I want to help you." He held out a hand and took a step forward.

"I don't need your help!" She screamed. In the light he could see her eyes clearly, and what he saw scared him. The red ring had grown considerably large, though there was still white around her eye.

"I can see that," Beast Boy looked back at the fallen and dented door, "but I want to try anyway."

"Why? Why me?"

"Because, because you're, special." He looked down and blushed a little.

"How? What makes me so special that you'd be willing to risk your life just to talk to me?"

"I don't know. You just are."

"Move." She demanded.

"No. Not until I find out what's wrong." He told her.

"I have to go to the bathroom." She crossed her arms.

"Oh. Wait, you aren't trying to trick me are you?" She shook her head.

"I don't lie Beast Boy. Trick maybe, but I never lie." He stared at her hard for a moment before sighing and stepping aside.

"What are we going to do about Robin's door?" He asked. She picked up her stuff, went over to where the door laid, put everything down again as she squatted, put her hands it, and lifted the whole thing up and back into place.

"Better?" She asked rhetorically. He blinked at her. She picked up her things and quickly headed towards the bathroom. Beast Boy followed, determined not to let her out of his sight. Well, except for, _that_. When she came back out after reaching the room she was dressed in her suit, which she had left in there for the next time she changed, had her belt on and her book in hand. There was no sign of her sword case, but Robin had found out there was a button on it to make it turn invisible.

Cyborg made it to Robin's bedroom to find the door dented and that it appeared to have been knocked down and replaced. His sensors told him Beast Boy had come across Shadow and then followed her to the bathroom. _"Dirty thoughts be gone!"_ "Wait a minute, she left her suit in the bathroom, she grabbed her book, swords, and I'm guessing her belt…she's going to try and escape!" He quickly grabbed his communicator and turned the signal to all the Titan's communicators. "Cyborg calling Titans! Cyborg calling Titans! I think Shadow is going to try and escape! Repeat, Shadow is going to try and escape!" He shut it off and raced for the bathroom.

Robin, Raven, and Starfire had been together when the message was sent through, and now they quickly went to some of the exits. Raven went to the garage, Starfire to the common room because of the large windows, and Robin headed for the roof.

"Is this true?" Beast Boy asked after hearing the message. She nodded.

"And if you really do want to help, you'll let me go." He shook his head.

"I can't do that."

"Try and make me stay." She taunted and attempted to push past him. He shoved her back and turned into a tiger. Her eyes widened with recognition and surprise, then narrowed in anger. "You tricked me." She growled. He only swished his tail, but felt bad at the same time. "I trusted you! Glandthro. You are merely a halfling in disguise." She spat with disgust. She moved forward anyway, and Beast Boy moved to block her path. She tried the other side and he did the same. Then she tried faking, but his reflexes allowed him to mirror her. "Fine. Have it your way." She jumped in the air and sailed over him, his reaching paws missing her by centimeters, and landed on the opposite wall. Then she lunged forward and hit the ground running, attempting to get away. The tiger was faster and easily caught up to her and knocked her down. Beast Boy pinned her down the same way he had at the park, only this time she struggled more, but with no avail. He stood above her snarling, hoping to just tire her out without a fight. "I don't want to hurt you." She said in her language. He didn't change his position. "But I'm not going to be held in captivity any longer!" She bent her knees and thrust him back and scrambled up to continue running. After regaining his feet Beast Boy sped after her and attempted to knock her down again, but she jumped onto the wall and began jumping from side to side. She dropped to the ground again at the foot of the stairs to the roof. Robin was standing there with his arms crossed and Beast Boy pulled up behind her and turned back to normal.

"Move aside Robin."

"No. You are not to leave this tower, and I'm seriously considering locking you up."

"Have it your way." She tossed her book onto the floor, extended her bow staff and was about to swing it at him when it was stopped. She looked behind her to see Beast Boy holding on to it. She retracted it and turned back to Robin. Shadow rolled her arms to loosen them up; popped her neck; and when she lifted each foot up one at a time, they became like cleats, two serrated disks came out of each side, and a blade came out of the front. She extended her claws and snapped her jaws. In short, she was serious about leaving. Robin brought out some exploding disks, and Beast Boy turned into a lion. Cyborg arrived upon this scene, and sensing the dangerous atmosphere, readied his sonic cannon. Raven and Starfire had been called when Robin saw Shadow coming down the hall, and now they too got ready by calling upon their powers. Shadow was surrounded, but this didn't seem to phase her. "Why can't I go?" She asked evenly.

"Because you're a criminal and a danger to this city." Robin replied

"All of _you_ are a danger to this city, what makes me any different? Because I don't trust you? Because I'm stronger, faster, smarter, and meaner than you? Because I do what I have to in order to _survive_? What is it?" There was silence for a while until Cyborg spoke up.

"You know she does have a point." Robin glared at him and Cyborg shrugged. Then Beast Boy got an idea. It probably wouldn't work since he didn't know how to speak the language very well, but it was worth a shot.

"Shenka, igna northula parsut hisleck." He spoke to Shadow. He couldn't see her reaction, but by the way Starfire cocked her head and Robin raised an eyebrow, she did something strange. Then he could hear it; she was trying not to laugh. All of her weapons that she had brought out receded to back where they had come from, and she turned around to look at him.

"What?" She asked in a laugh.

"Uh, I was trying too--"

"You just said you want to put fire ants down your pants." Beast Boy recoiled in shock and tried to hide his blush.

"Wow B, didn't know you were kinky like that." Cyborg teased.

"I didn't mean that!" He shouted.

"Suurre." Raven rolled her eyes.

"What were you trying to say?" Shadow asked, clearly not angry anymore. This relaxed the Titans into lowering their defenses, but they were ready incase her mood changed all of a sudden.

"I was trying to say, um," He took a breath and released it, "that I understand and agree."

"And yet instead you said you want to put fire ants down your pants. Wow." Raven said. Again Beast Boy blushed, both with anger and embarrassment, and glared at her.

"I want to know something, but I think I already know the answer." Shadow said to Beast Boy.

"What is it?" He asked. Everybody else listened intently, also wanting to know.

"How come you can understand the language I speak?" They were caught off guard, especially Beast Boy.

"I-I don't really know. I just…do. Sorta." He kicked at the ground. She walked up close to him and whispered in his ear, making him somewhat uncomfortable until he heard what she said.

"It's because you're a shifter, isn't it?"

"A what?"

"A shifter. Figure it out." She stepped back and turned to face the others. "Now what happens?"

"I really don't know. I'd like to get some more answers out of you, but if you're this unpredictable and intent on getting out, I might have to have Cyborg tranquilize you so we can contain you until we can find a maximum security prison that's not full." Robin said. Shadow glared at him. After a moment she sighed.

"If you promise to let me go within the month, preferably before Halloween, I will answer some of your questions." She said with caution. Robin looked at each Titan, who seemed to think it a good idea, and then looked back at Shadow.

"Deal. But we pick the question and how much of an answer is acceptable." She nodded. "What I want to know right now, is what is so important about Halloween?"

"How about we go sit down in the common room?" Cyborg suggested. The rest agreed and they set off for the comfy couches for a long talk.

Once everybody had settled in, gotten some snacks or something to drink, Robin asked his question again.

"I doubt you will be able to learn everything about me, especially not before dark. But on Halloween there is a full moon, which for me is good." Shadow said, somewhat vaguely.

"Why?" Robin pressed. She sighed.

"Along with my unnatural agility, strength, and intelligence, I have powers. Well, I will again on Halloween."

"Powers? What kind of powers?" Starfire asked.

"Pretty much anything you can think of, but the basic groups are mind powers, dark magic, and shape shifting. I think that covers it."

"Mind powers?" Cyborg asked.

"Dark magic?" Raven inquired.

"Shape shifting?" Beast Boy questioned.

"Yes. Mind powers like, well, being able to move items or living things just by thinking of it, destruction of such with just a thought, etc. Dark magic like Raven's but stronger. Shape shifting into animals either mythical and factual." She clarified. They stared at her wordlessly for a moment before Cyborg spoke up.

"What do you mean you will again?"

"My powers were disabled before my flight, but only for two weeks, which is until Halloween. Usually because of the way they were rendered incompetent, they would come back little by little after the two weeks unless the antidote was applied. But because of the full moon, they will come back full on." She smiled a little at this thought. Finally after a long pause, Starfire asked what had been on everyone's mind since the story was passed around.

"What does Slade have to do with this?" She asked. Instead of the tension easing from the question being asked, it built up to almost an unbearable state waiting for the question to be answered. Shadow's eyes darkened and her brow furrowed. She seemed angry as well as wary and scared at the same time. After what seemed hours, but was only seconds, she spoke.

"That is for me to know."

"This is important Shadow." Robin scolded.

"Yes, we must know how he has harmed you." Starfire said sweetly and with concern. Shadow shook her head.

"How come you won't tell us? Was it that bad…or…something else?" Beast Boy asked. He could feel her emotions, and by the look in Raven's eyes, she was feeling them just as strongly.

"Both." Shadow said shortly. "And it's my fight. My issue. You are not involved and shouldn't try to be." She glared at them all.

"What about your book?" Raven asked quickly to change the subject. She knew that if it was important as Robin said, Shadow would tell them in her own time.

"What about it? By the way," Shadow straightened up, "I want it back."

"We'll consider that after you tell us why you bought it." Raven replied.

"Yeah. According to Raven, it's full of freaky voodoo stuff." Cyborg wiggled his fingers to add effect.

"Spells. It's full of spells. And the other half is information on demons." Shadow said.

"Why are you interested in demons?" Raven asked cautiously.

"Is there a reason I shouldn't be?" She spat back.

"No, it's just…unusual." Cyborg replied.

"You're unusual but you don't see me questioning that." She shrugged. The sun was going down now and Shadow narrowed her eyes slightly at the mixed light.

"May we at least know for sure what your scars are from?" Starfire asked.

"Mostly hand-to-hand beatings. Weapons of various sort"

"The ones on your back?" Robin pushed.

"Bull-whip." She said in a tone that meant the conversation was over. The Titans sensed this and stopped asking questions.

"Well, if we hurry we can get to Jump Pizza Palace before it closes." Cyborg suggested after noticing the sunset.

"Sounds good." Beast Boy got up and all but Robin and Shadow followed.

"Wait! We can't just _leave_. What about her?" He motioned to Shadow.

"Oh. Right." Was the general response. They sat down again to try and work something out.

"What if one of us stays behind to keep an eye on her and we can bring something back for them?" Cyborg suggested.

"I don't know…one might not be enough."

"I promise not to kill them." Shadow put her hand on her heart. Then after seeing Robin's look, "Or harm them in some way that is life threatening." She sighed.

"I still don't--"

"Please Robin?" Starfire begged. "I have been craving the mint frosted pizza with my beloved mustard all of the day." Robin stared at her for a moment before giving in.

"Fine." He sighed. They cheered. "But," He interrupted their celebration, "who is going to stay here?" Nobody volunteered.

"Anybody but him's fine with me." Shadow thumbed at Robin and shrugged.

"And why is that?" He asked.

"Human human all alone. Why are you so far from home? Best be careful out of bed. Or Shadow's sure to see you dead." She chanted.

"Um…okay then. Creepy." Beast Boy said, breaking almost a full minute of silence.

"Very much so." Starfire added. Shadow just smirked and a smile came into her eyes for a moment.

"C'mon guys! Figure it out! It's getting dark and I'm hungry!" Cyborg whined, and as if to prove this his stomach growled fiercely.

"I'll stay." Raven said. "I don't really want to go anyway."

"Are you sure?" Starfire asked. Raven nodded.

"This is going to be strange." Cyborg remarked.

"Why?" Shadow asked.

"Two dark witches in the same tower alone. My thoughts are it could go either of two ways. One; they could completely ignore each other or two; something going to get blown up."

"Good point." Robin mused. "But you really want to go, Starfire's been wanting her strange pizza, she would kill me, and Beast Boy's already pissed her off greatly. I also think he's been spending too much time with her." He whispered this last part under his breath but both the shifter and Shadow caught it. None of them said anything however.

"Then it's settled." Raven said. Cyborg's stomach growled even more loudly this time.

"Let's go then! The place closes in half an hour!" He shoved the ones who were going out the door with him. Raven and Shadow were left in the common room. The sun was almost gone now giving the room and eerie glow. Both of them were effected by the strange light, but Raven couldn't help but feel something was wrong with how her political detainee looked at the moment. Her eyes were giving off a slight reflection, definitely _not_ normal, but there was something else…

"What?" Shadow snapped at Raven, bringing her back to the real world. She shook her head.

"Nothing." She stood up and went to the kitchen to calm herself down with some tea. Shadow shrugged and picked up her book that she had laid down on the couch when they went in. She quickly scanned through it, pausing to read a paragraph or two, before stopping at the middle. The last demon mentioned in this half of the very large book was called Draklata; the Devil's Dragon. Raven came back over and saw her reading intently. Despite knowing it was rude and an invasion of privacy to read over one's shoulder, she had to peek. _'Draklata? How is that even pronounced? The Devil's Dragon, huh. I wonder if this is why Shadow bought the book, but why?'_ Shadow quickly marked her place with a finger, closed the book, and turned to glare at Raven all in one motion. Raven backed up quickly and went to sit down again on the loveseat. Once she was sure Raven couldn't see the text or pictures, Shadow continued to read.

"All-Meat Pizza." Cyborg argued.

"Dude! Does the word 'vegetarian' mean anything to you?" Beast Boy countered.

"It means that you aren't letting me get the Super Deluxe All-Meat Pizza!" Cyborg shouted. Robin sighed and his head fell onto the outside table.

"Is something of the matter?" Starfire asked him.

"They've been going at this for almost ten minutes." Robin groaned from his position.

"Yes, and I still would like my cheese-covered wheel with mint frosting and mustard." The fighting continued until Robin shot up and yelled.

"This place closes in twenty minutes! Can we _please_ just compromise? Get one of each if it comes to that!" He breathed heavily after expelling his frustration. Cyborg and Beast Boy looked at each other and both shrugged.

"Sounds good to me."

"Yeah."

"Good. I'll go order." Robin stood up to go inside.

"Raven likes pepperoni, right?" Cyborg asked. Robin nodded.

"Yeah, and since I like mine with olives I'll just get a half-and-half since I'm not that hungry and Raven doesn't eat much." Robin said. He started off to leave when Beast Boy reminded them all of something they had forgotten.

"What about Shadow?" Everybody turned to look at him. "She hasn't eaten anything since," He began to count on his fingers, messed up, tried again, "three days counting the apple she had. Before that she said it was a week." Robin sighed and ran a hand down his face, frustrated and annoyed that their captive was, once again, being involved in their normal lives by Beast Boy.

"If she was hungry she would have said something." He folded his arms across his chest.

"Perhaps she feels unwelcome and does not want to put us out, as you say." Starfire said.

"Doubt it." Robin mumbled.

"Just call Raven and see if Shadow wants something." Cyborg said.

"Fine!" Robin pulled out his communicator and muttered something that sounded like "Stupid girl, making my friends pity you" and called Raven. She picked up after a second and her face came on the screen.

"Is something wrong?" She asked.

"Not really. The rest of the team wants to know if Shadow wants something too." Raven could hear the anger in his voice though his face was calm.

"Hold on." Her face turned away for a moment and he could hear her talking. "Do you want some pizza Shadow?" There was some mumbling in the background. "Do you even--oh, okay." Raven's face came back into view. "She said if it's okay she'd like pepperoni and olives--" She turned back around when there was some mumbling and then turned back. "--but that she's fine if you don't want to spend the money."

'_Now she's taking my pizza.'_ "Not at all." Robin smiled fakely. "Thanks Raven, we'll be back soon." She nodded and hung up.

"So?" Cyborg asked when he saw the conversation was over.

"Pepperoni and olives." He said simply.

"She likes the same kind you do?" Starfire asked. Robin nodded stiffly. Then he walked inside to order to go.

Raven thought it strange the blank look the girl across from her had given her when she asked if Shadow wanted pizza. It was like she didn't know what pizza was. Every person from age 4-100 knew what pizza was. Then she had remembered, or something, and asked for the same Robin had. _'She's an odd one.'_ Raven thought, though she knew all of them were strange in some way or another. When she glanced up again at Shadow, she had turned upside down with her legs over the back of the couch and her head hanging, still reading. Shaking her head once more, she went back to reading The Magic Within Us.

The rest of the Titans arrived half an hour later with five pizzas. Raven got up to go get hers, which had been a full one instead of half-and-half, and all but Shadow began to dig in. Robin set his down and opened it up. Deciding that since Shadow liked the same he did, it would be pointless to get two of the same. She got up after a moment and shyly came over, hanging in the back.

'_Relax. It's not The Factory, you don't have to be competitive.'_ She told herself. _'Mine!'_ She quickly snatched the first piece of Robin's and her pizza and walked away a little bit.

"Hey!" Robin protested. She simply smirked and began to eat.

"I always got the first piece." She stated simply. Within seconds she had downed her first piece and grabbed her second while Robin and most everybody was on their first.

"Slow down girl! There's plenty to go around." Cyborg said, finishing his first. They had found another chair for her to sit down in, and she was sitting between both girls. Though she ate quickly and hungrily, there was a certain grace that she had that was not unlike Raven when she ate. By the time Robin was on his third, Shadow had eaten through her half of the pizza and gone back to read. Raven debated whether to tell them or not, but seeing as she was not a friend or to be trusted, any information about Shadow would have to be relayed.

"What I find interesting," Raven started, getting everybody's attention, "is that when I first asked if she wanted pizza, she looked at me like she didn't know what I was talking about."

"Excuse me? Every person from 4-100 knows what pizza is if they're from Earth! And Starfire knows she's not an alien, so she has to be from Earth." Cyborg said.

"That's what I thought, but all the same."

"Huh. That certainly is odd." Beast Boy said. After a few more minutes every person was finished with their meal, and decided to go to bed rather than ask anymore questions. Many of them clearly made Shadow uncomfortable in a very bad way, and if they were to get anything else out of her, she had to be in a good mood. They were doomed.

"Is she still going to sleep on the couch? Not that it's uncomfortable, but it's not exactly the best." Beast Boy asked Robin.

"She doesn't deserve the best. It's either that or the House Arrest Room. Besides, we don't have a room ready for her." He replied.

"What about Raven's? Her bed is big enough." Robin shook his head.

"She'd never go for it. You know how much she hates having people just come into her room, let alone someone who _wasn't_ her friend _sleeping_ in there."

"Yeah, I see you're right. Cyborg just has that metal table…" He started thinking.

"I've only got a cot." Robin interrupted before Beast Boy could try and weasel him into taking Shadow. What was with him?

"Yeah. And she hate's Starfire's because of all the pink. Wait, I've got a bunk bed." He looked back up at Robin with hope in his eyes.

"She's not staying in any of our rooms." Robin spoke with finality. Beast Boy's eyes pleaded. "She's not a guest! She's a criminal!" He tried to reason with the green man. "Fine." He gave in. Beast Boy jumped into the air and cheered.

"Yes! I'm going to go clean my room!" He dashed off.

"What is _with_ him? First he keeps defending her, then he keeps trying to make her involved, and now he's cleaning his room after begging to let her sleep somewhere other than the couch." Robin shook his head slowly. "That's it. After this he's not allowed near her without supervision. I'm just glad we had those security cameras installed in the rooms after the Beast incident." Robin walked off to inform the others.

"He's what? Is it April Fools already?" Cyborg checked the calendar.

"No, he's serious." Robin said.

"Why does he _want_ me to sleep in there? I'm fine with the couch, though I'd rather be out there sleeping on grass." Shadow scowled.

"I know, I know, hard-earned freedom and all that. You don't have to." Robin said and sighed heavily. "Cyborg, I want to talk to you for a minute." The Boy Wonder and metal teen walked over to the other side of the room.

"What's up Rob?" Cyborg asked as he came over to where Robin was standing.

"I think Beast Boy a little too interested in Shadow." Robin said seriously.

"Yeah, I've kinda noticed that too. But what are we going to do about it? I mean, you just agreed to let Shadow sleep in there and he's so happy he's _cleaning his room_."

"Maybe she won't do it anyway. She said herself that the couch was fine." Robin hoped. "And if she does decide to sleep in there, the security cameras still work right?" He asked.

"Yeah, but that was only when Beast Boy was having those problems. And don't you think that's a little personal?" He asked. This wasn't something he'd normally do, even if it did promise blackmail.

"I'm just concerned. More about Beast Boy than Shadow. She doesn't seem like she's interested in any way, which is good, but when Beast Boy gets stuck on something he tends to ignore dangerous things about it. Remember Terra?" Cyborg nodded gravely. They hadn't notice Shadow come up behind them.

"Is it a bunk bed or not?" She asked. Both men jumped in surprise.

"How long have you been there?" Robin asked.

"Just arrived. And I tuned you out so I wouldn't hear the conversation on the way over." She said.

"Oh. Uh, it's a bunk bed." Cyborg said. Shadow nodded.

"Then I'll take it."

"Are you sure?" Robin asked. Again she nodded. He glanced at Cyborg and he nodded back at him. The security camera for that room would be activated and monitored. Just then Beast Boy came running back into the room.

"Finished!" He said out of breath. "Is she still going to sleep in there?" He asked before spotting said girl. "Oh, are you?" She nodded. His smile widened. "So do you want top or bottom?" This was followed by a swift smack to the head by Cyborg. "Ow! What was that--I didn't mean it _that_ way! Sheesh!" He blushed and rubbed his head. Shadow's face hadn't changed from her calm demeanor.

"Bottom is fine." She said. Beast Boy regained his smile.

"Okay. My room's this way." He started to grab for her hand to lead her, but she swiftly moved it away and narrowed her eyes at him. "Oh, right. Sorry. Come this way." He walked out and Shadow followed. Robin and Cyborg shook their heads.

"What are we going to do with him?" Cyborg asked.

"For the moment, go make sure the security camera is positioned right." Robin went to go to the control room and Cyborg followed. Raven decided to go to bed, and Starfire went to take a shower.

(A/N: About the long chapter; I didn't mean to! cringes I just couldn't find a good place to stop as the ideas kept coming. So now I have an 11 page long chapter…I still hope you guys enjoy this! The last few days have been awesome! I've been waiting for warmer weather for moths, and then we have 80s and 90s all of a sudden! Sweet. You now know more about Shadow and her book. BTW, Draklata is pronounced Drak as in whack, lat as in latter (or lot sometimes), and a as in uh. Also, the book Raven was reading isn't actually real, unless it somehow is 0.o If you guys want to know how to pronounce something just let me know J I'm building my language as we speak Tis nirgle. R&R Please!)


	9. Chapter 9

(A/N: Well it seems you guys weren't deterred by the freakishly long chapter that was number 8. Good J So it seems like I didn't do too bad on it and that makes me happy J But what pisses me off and makes me sad, is that my sister cough Raven'sWinterRaine cough doesn't seem interested in my story at all while she still asks me to read hers, if nothing but to correct her hundreds of stupid spelling and grammar mistakes. sigh Well I may not be as popular as she is on this site, but at least I make more of an effort to fix the mistakes _before_ having to get my (in her case older) sister to fix them. Ah, I'm rambling again. On with chapter 9! Oh, I don't own any poetry or song, etc. mentioned in this story unless I say so, even if I distort the truth about where it's from slightly.)

Beast Boy happily lead his new roommate to his bedroom. He knew that it must seem very strange to want her to sleep in there, but all he was thinking about was letting her have a more comfortable time while she was here. He couldn't help it; it was in his nature to try and be kind. Then there was a question hovering behind his eyes, a question that he continued to shove away and refuse to acknowledge its existence. Did he have a crush on Shadow? No, surely it was nothing more than wanting her to be happier, was it? Before he could dwell on this anymore his bedroom door came up before him. Shadow scrunched her nose slightly at the smell of cleaning supplies, and wondered for a moment why he was being so nice to her.

"Well, here it is." He said and walked through the door as it opened. She hung back for a moment to survey what she could see from the doorway, and came in slowly when he called to her. Had she seen the room before Beast Boy had cleaned it she would have probably fainted at such a drastic change. Everything was picked up and put away, the dirty clothes were in an actual hamper that had been buried by random items, both bunks were made, the desk that had been repaired long ago was neat and tidy, and you could _actually_ see the floor. It didn't smell bad either, unless the smell of pine cleaner bothered you. "What do you think?" He asked nervously, hoping she approved for some reason unknown to him.

"It'll do." She said, finally looking back at him after surveying the room more thoroughly. Beast Boy smiled.

"Uh, well here's the bottom bunk. That is the one you wanted, right?" He clarified. Shadow gave a short nod and went over to sit on the bed, bouncing slightly to test it's durability. The frame squeaked slightly, but otherwise was quiet. She looked back up at the green man in front of her and he saw in her eyes that it was acceptable. This made his spirit soar, most likely because someone like Shadow; dark, quiet, intelligent, mistrusting; could accept something, or some_one_, as plain as this as being okay. "So it's good?" She nodded shortly in reply again. Beast Boy saw the clock, almost 9:30. "I guess you'll want to go to bed now? So you need anything to sleep in?" He asked. He had a few civilian clothes to wear when going undercover or just to wear when he got tired of his suit. She shook her head no shortly. "How come you aren't talking?"

"I have no reason too." Shadow replied.

"Oh. Well, I'm going to change in the bathroom." Beast Boy strolled out after getting a shirt and shorts to change into. Shadow watched him go out and then took a quick look around again.

'_A security camera? Hmm, doesn't look like it's on…still.'_ She walked as close as she could to the camera, which was set in the far corner where it could see almost everything. Pulling a pair of sunglasses out of her belt, Shadow put them on and stared at the device. These glasses, however, were built specifically for examining machinery from far off. The sensors indicated that it was indeed off, and she was about to take them off when the light turned on and the sensors said it had just been turned on. "Interesting." She muttered to herself before putting the glasses back where she had gotten them from.

Robin and Cyborg arrived in the control room and located the controls for the security cam in Beast boy's room. The ones on the room had been turned off after several months since it seemed Beast Boy's issue wasn't surfacing again, and it was too much of an invasion of privacy. They were always kept hooked up just incase however.

"Okay, if I flip this switch…connect this wire…there. That should do it." Cyborg said after fiddling with some things. And like he said, a screen came on showing Shadow looking at the camera with a pair of sunglasses on.

"Interesting." They heard her mutter before putting her shades back. The two teens took up a seat around the screen to monitor it more closely. Then the girl did something unexpected; she waved at the camera. "I promised not to hurt him, remember?" She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at the device.

"She knows. She must have seen it come on." Cyborg mused. Then he thought of something, just to see what would happen. He moved a joystick and the screen moved up and down quickly before going back to its original position. Robin got it; he had just made the security cam nod to Shadow. He smiled slightly despite himself at the strange way of communicating, since they could hear her, but until the microphone was reactivated she couldn't hear them.

"Good. You aren't going to be perverted and watch me sleep are you?" She asked. After a moment the camera shook side to side, indicating a no. Nodding shortly again, she turned around and walked off towards the bed.

Cyborg chuckled slightly and turned to look at Robin. "Never misses a thing does she?" He asked more to himself.

"No. I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing." Robin seemed to go into thought and his metal friend brought him back out by clapping him on the back and standing up.

"I've set the security camera to record all night, and in the morning we can check the tape. I'm going to go to bed now, and I think you should too. I'm pretty sure the girls have gone too." Cyborg walked out of the control room. Robin nodded absent mindedly and, after watching the screen for a few more moments, also went out to go to bed.

Beast Boy came back to his room after a couple of minutes to find that Shadow had turned the lights off and was sound asleep. Or at least he thought she was. As he walked over to the ladder he saw her eyes flash in the moonlight and knew she was awake. "Sorry, did I wake you?" He whispered. She shook her head and turned over to face the wall. He saw her boots were by the bed, and her belt and sword carrier were on the floor next to them. Beast Boy climbed up to the top bunk and settled in. He was less uneasy than he thought he should be, but he told himself it was probably just because his animal instincts recognized this one as a familiar and not a serious threat. "Goodnight Shadow." He whispered down to her and heard a mumble of a reply. Beast Boy turned over and was soon asleep. He had the same dream as before, and once again only made it to the part where the beautiful girl was about to say her name when his alarm went off. He had set it for earlier than usual, seeing as their new houseguest woke up early. Although the clock was set for 9 a.m., it took five minutes of blaring to wake up the heavy sleeper that was Beast Boy. Groaning, he turned over to smack it, and only realized he was on the top bunk too late. With a cry he fell to the earth and landed with a loud thud.

"Ugh. Pain." He moaned as he sat up and rubbed his aching head. Glaring at the alarm clock he struck it and it shut off it's loud call of wakefulness. Then he remembered that someone else was supposed to be sleeping, and turned around to find…nothing. The bottom bunk was empty, and even made. "I wonder where she went." He said sleepily and walked out to go to the bathroom and then see if anybody else was up.

Cyborg was up and in the kitchen making breakfast for Raven, Starfire, Robin, and himself. They had found Shadow sitting by the window again earlier when Robin had come in. When asked when she had awoken, the shadowy girl had replied five a.m.

"Why do you keep waking up at five?" Robin had asked.

"Habit." She had replied simply. Beast Boy came in shortly after breakfast was made and took a seat between Cyborg and Robin.

"Did you guys make any tofu?" He asked after grabbing some pancakes and a glass of juice.

"Nope." Cyborg replied simply and crammed a full flapjack into his mouth.

"Of course not." The green shifter got up to go make some for himself. In the middle of their meal the alarm went off. The Titans acted as usual and rushed to the computer to see what was up. Shadow, however, had jumped up, her pupils had shrunken and then widened to a point that looked as if it should be painful, and she began looking around frantically with her claws extended. She was also breathing quickly and heavily in her state of panic. After shutting the alarm off Robin announced that Plasmus was tearing through the city again.

"What are we going to do about Shadow? Are you okay?" Cyborg had asked first Robin and then Shadow herself when he saw her state. The rest of them turned to see her frightened state as well and realized that while they were used to the loud noise and flashing light, she wasn't.

"Huh? Uh, I guess." She breathed in between gasps. "What does that mean?" She asked as she was finally getting her breathing and heart rate back to normal. She retracted her claws as well and her eyes went back to normal. They could tell she was still pretty shaken up though.

"Trouble. Cyborg, I think the four of us can take him down while you stay here and watch her. If we need you we'll call." Robin said. Cyborg nodded and the others dashed off. The tower was quiet again after a few minutes, and Shadow had gone back to the window with her book this time. He decided to play Super Ninja Monkeys 4: Attack of the Evil Banana. Shadow got up quickly and rushed over to the table with a piece of paper and writing utensil about five minutes in. He paused the game to watch what she was doing.

"I knew it! I knew it had something to do with that." She muttered to herself as she copied something down from the book.

"What?" He asked as he walked over. She either ignored him or didn't hear because she just kept writing. He looked over her shoulder and read the following:

"_Fallen angels at my feet_

_Whispered voices at my ear_

_Death before my eyes_

_Lying next to me I fear_

_She beckons me_

_Shall I give in?_

_Upon my end shall I begin_

_Forsaking all I've fallen for_

_I rise to meet the end"_

"What's that?" He asked again. It seemed very familiar to him, like he had heard it somewhere before.

"Nothing." Shadow replied and stuffed the paper in her book before walking back to stare out the window again. He shrugged and went back to his game.

Robin threw a couple of freeze discs at the horrific monster, temporarily immobilizing it. Starfire threw a couple of her star bolts at the thing, causing it to shriek and swing it's arms at her. Raven tossed a car at it's head, knocking it off balance. Beast Boy flew up as a hummingbird and came back down as a brontosaurus on the creature, crushing it. As he climbed out of the goop with a smile on his face, Robin was walking over to the police to see if they could keep the sleeping man in a more secure place. The team regrouped, thinking the job over.

"I think we have just the place. It's out in the middle of nowhere and is very quiet, so we shouldn't have to worry about Plasmus again." The police chief said. Then they heard a noise that disturbed them; a loud sneeze, and then groaning. The Titans looked over to see Plasmus had woken up and was becoming the horrible gooey thing again. Within seconds the large purple mass was standing above them again.

"We're going to need help." Beast Boy said, his ears drooping at the site of the thing.

"Agreed." Starfire said as they dodged a fist slammed into the ground where they once were. Shooting star bolts, whips of black energy, exploding disks, and attacks from various animals did nothing to the stinking ooze this time, and the four Titans were soon exhausted. "Please Robin, we need Cyborg." Starfire pleaded as they hid behind a building to regain some of their strength.

"Fine." He gasped for breath. All of them had been hit at one time or another. He pulled out his communicator and called Cyborg.

Cyborg was making a triple-decker sandwich when his communicator beeped. "What's up?" He asked cheerfully, expecting the task to have been finished.

"We need your help Cyborg. Plasmus is doing us in." Robin spoke quickly before catching his breath again.

"I'm on my way." He said and disconnected. Knowing that Robin would kill him if he left Shadow at the tower alone, he called for her and quickly took off for the garage.

"And, _where_ am I going?" She asked as she caught up to him.

"Outside." He said simply and arrived at the T-car. She stopped short for a moment, but decided not to press her luck by asking questions. Hopping into the front seats they shot out across the bridge connecting to the mainland and headed for the scene.

"Where is Friend Cyborg?" Starfire asked as she stood up shakily from yet another throw down.

"He should have been here by now." Raven added as she put up a shield to protect her friends from the giant goo's attacks. The T-car pulled up just then and the robotic teen stepped out.

"What's the plan?" He asked as he rushed behind Raven's barrier.

"Good, you're here." Robin said. "Can you try and tire it out while we think of a way to keep it down?" He asked. A large fist came down upon the black energy, making it shake.

"I suggest we do something fast. I can't hold it up for much longer." Raven said.

"I'm on it." Cyborg bounded out from behind the barrier. "Hey! Ugly! Over here you stupid grape jelly!" He shouted, successfully attracting the monster's attention. It roared and attempted to squish him, but Cyborg dodged and shot off a couple well aimed sonic blasts. One of these caught the side of the monster's head and splattered it everywhere. "Boo yah!" Raven and Starfire brought their powers together in one swirling stream, finishing off the rest. They didn't have to wait long before it began to piece itself back together, however. Shadow was still sitting in the car, enjoying the scene, though wishing she could be part of the action.

"I, am, so, bored!" She leaned back and sighed before straightening up again. The Titans were seriously damaging the monster, but it would only keep rebuilding itself and the team was quickly going down. _'And I didn't have to do a thing.'_ She thought to herself with a smirk. "Ugh, but I'm so desperately bored. Maybe, just this once, I'll help them out." Trying to figure out what it would take to stop something made of…goo that could piece itself back together, Shadow suddenly came upon an idea. Individual parts could come back together, but if it was a frozen mass…She picked up the book she had brought along and flipped to the back half. "I may not have my powers, but I can still use spells." She came across the one she was looking for, memorized it, and stepped out of the car.

"Icincle goonasta concento!" Her eyes turned an icy blue and she raised her hands high above her head. They became covered in ice and it shot off towards Plasmus when she aimed. The monster screamed in agony as the ice began to consume it. The screeches and sounds of angered jelly died off within seconds when all that was left was an ice sculpture of the villain. When Shadow had seen the job was done, her eyes turned back to normal and she lowered her non-frozen hands back to her side. The Titans came over to Shadow with caution.

"How did you do that?" Raven asked.

"_Why_ did you do that?" Cyborg asked as well.

"My book has many spells, and can still be used whether I have my powers or not." Shadow explained, the expression of anger and determination still upon her face. "And I did it because I was really bored, which is rare."

"So, you decided to help us?" Beast Boy asked. Shadow closed her eyes and nodded before looking straight ahead again. Nobody knew what to say or feel right then. Then Robin realized something they had overlooked, and this made him all the more confused.

"You could have run." He said. Shadow nodded again, not actually looking at them, but more through them.

"Hey, you're right. Why didn't you? Why aren't you now?" Cyborg asked.

"I don't know. Something's telling me there's no reason to." She said.

"So, does that mean you're staying?" Beast Boy asked.

"Uh…" Shadow took a step backwards and tried to think.

"Oh it is most glorious to have a new friend!" Starfire grabbed the poor girl in a bone-crushing hug before anything could be done.

"Let. Go! Can't. Breathe!" Shadow gasped and then held her breath the best she could.

"I am sorry!" The alien princess dropped her victim and she began to breath again.

"Um, I'm not too sure about Shadow being a friend Star." Robin put a hand on her shoulder.

"But, has she not decided to no longer harm us or run away?" The princess asked with her head tilted.

"I'm not your friend." Shadow said firmly. "But, seeing as my instincts don't see you as a major threat anymore, and you _do_ feed me, I suppose you could be of some use to me."

"Whoa whoa whoa, of some _use_ to you? So what, we're just something that's worthless unless useful?" Cyborg asked, angry at her words.

"Exactly. However, if you don't find me useful, I'm more than happy to leave." She suggested, a smirk on her lips. Her face was once again covered in makeup, making it pale, and her cruel eyes stood out like a flame in the dark.

"Nah, no." Robin stopped her. "You still aren't allowed to leave. Not yet." He crossed his arms to emphasize his point. Shadow huffed lightly.

"Can we just go home now?" Raven asked impatiently. They all agreed and determined the arrangements for getting home. Robin and Starfire would ride his R-cycle, and Cyborg Raven, Beast Boy and Shadow would ride in the car.

They arrived back at the tower and flopped down onto the couch. Well, all but Shadow, who went over to the window again with her book. Beast Boy decided to try something and went over to the dark girl.

"Hey, Shadow?" He asked nervously.

"Hm." She replied without looking up from her reading.

"I was wondering, um, if you wouldn't mind, that is," He stammered, trying to think of the right way to say this.

"Spit it out already!" Shadow growled. He jumped slightly.

"Could you teach me some of those spells? They looked pretty powerful and cool." Beast Boy said quickly. Shadow gave a short laugh.

"Ha! Not possible."

"Why not?" He complained.

"First of all, you aren't worthy to know these spells." Shadow began to explain and Beast Boy turned angry. "Secondly," She continued without giving him time to speak, "if you pronounce anything even slightly incorrect it could go horribly wrong." She closed the book and stood up. "Satisfied?" She spat.

"Who says I can't learn to speak that freaky language correctly?" Beast Boy shouted loudly enough that the rest of the team looked over.

"Who says I'd teach you? Seeing as you _clearly_ don't know what you're saying Mr. Fire Ants Down My Pants." Shadow retaliated and Beast Boy blushed both from anger and embarrassment.

"Please, why are they fighting?" Starfire asked.

"I have no clue." Cyborg said.

"He probably bugged her like he does to me." Raven said.

"But I can understand it! So why can't I learn it?"

"Who even says I'd let you learn it?" Shadow crossed her arms.

"What do you mean _let_ me learn it? It's not up to you what I learn and don't learn!" By now both teens were face to face and enraged by the other.

"For this it is. I'm the only other person who even _knows_ of the language." She smirked.

"So?"

"So, since you don't know it and I won't teach you, good luck learning anything about it." She leaned back with the smirk still on her face and Beast Boy stumbled for something to say.

"But I, couldn't, there isn't, not fair!" He pouted. After a moment of silence from everybody, Shadow spoke again.

"Tell you what, I'll make you a deal." Beast Boy perked up. "If you can tell me the name of the language I speak, I'll teach you." Her eyes flashed with victory, knowing there was no way he'd be able to figure it out without her saying it.

"Aw come on! That's not fair!" Beast Boy slouched and his arms hung down by his sides.

"Who ever said life was fair?" Shadow sat down again on the ledge, signaling the conversation was over. He huffed and walked off, trying to think of what the language could be called.

"Hey Raven?" He walked over to her.

"What?" Raven asked, her attention focused on her book.

"Since you know a lot about languages and stuff, could you help me?" He sat down next to her.

"I've never heard of her language. Sorry Beast Boy." She replied without looking up. He slumped again and then went over to Starfire.

"Starfire?" He asked. The rest had heard the entire conversation since they came into it.

"I am most sorry Friend Beast Boy, I have not heard of the language either." She apologized.

"Robin--"

"Nobody but Shadow knows about it B." Cyborg interrupted.

"Fine. I guess I'll go take a shower or something." He walked out. The room was relatively silent save for people moving around going about various activities and the television being on either for video games or channel surfing. Raven suddenly looked up from her book and stared intently at Shadow, not noticed by anybody else. She had felt a sudden emotional surge from the young woman, and could tell by her facial features that she was angry at something. Shadow slammed her book shut and sighed heavily.

"Damn it all to shivering Hell." She muttered under her breath. Then she glanced over and saw Raven was staring at her. "What?" She snapped. Raven quickly began reading her book again and Shadow went back to thinking.

Night came faster than any thought it would, and with it the Titans became sleepy earlier than usual. It was evident that winter was on it's way, and that this time around would be colder than the normal mild winter California was used to. Perhaps there would even be snow in some of the warmer parts. Shadow was still as active as ever, even more so it seemed, and had no thoughts about going to bed in her mind. She had read through almost all of her huge book already, and knew that without something to read or do soon she would go, not quite crazy, but she would be going towards that stage.

"Are you ready for bed yet Shadow?" Cyborg asked while yawning. The Titans had made an agreement that Shadow was not to be left alone, and that one of them would see her to Beast Boy's room when she was ready to go to bed. Of course, if she wasn't tired, they'd have to stay up too.

"Nope. Not at all." The corners of her mouth turned up slightly as evil thoughts once again crossed her mind. "By the way," She asked everyone, "how long can you stay up?" She turned a page in her book and waited for an answer.

"Why?" Robin asked cautiously.

"No reason, just wondering." But they could tell there was an ulterior motive to her question. "Or who can stay up the longest?"

"I can stay up for three days easily." Robin said proudly, forgetting that she had gone a week without proper sleep.

"Is that all?"

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"Well, I'm just saying that a lot of people can go for at least a day or two longer if they really try." She shrugged, but that smirk would not go away and her eyes gleamed with mischief.

"I said easily, not that three days is the most I can go. I've trained with the best and have learned to stay awake for long periods of time." Robin frowned, wary of her little game.

"Good." There was nothing more from her.

"Well how long can _you_ stay awake?" Cyborg challenged.

"Weeks." She stated simply, and this only made the team more tired trying to imagine how that would be possible. "And my powers have nothing to do with that." Another hour passed before all but Shadow were eager for a fluffy pillow beneath their heads.

"Can't we just make her go to bed? So _we_ can go to bed?" Cyborg complained to Robin in a whisper.

"Agreed. And Friend Beast Boy has been allowed to go to his sleeping quarters." Starfire spoke with her head resting on Robin's shoulder. Raven was drinking some fresh tea on the other side of the couch, but she too was looking a little droopy.

"Besides, my batteries need charged." Cyborg said.

"Fine, fine. But try not to make a habit of it." Robin and the others got up and went over to Shadow, who had seemingly fallen asleep against the window.

"Perhaps we can simply take her to Friend Beast Boy's room?" Starfire suggested.

"I'm not asleep. I'm just watching the rain." Shadow replied.

"It's not raining." Robin said, but she raised her arm and pointed at the window. Indeed a slight trickle had begun.

"Please Friend Shadow," Starfire pleaded, realizing she had called Shadow friend when the others said she wasn't, "we wish to go to the rooms of slumber and to do so you must also go to your room of slumber." After thinking for a long moment, Shadow sighed lightly.

"Fine, but don't expect me to be this nice all the time. I'm not even sure if I know _how_ to be nice." She muttered as she stood up and walked with them to Beast Boy's room, where light snores could be heard. They allowed Shadow to go in on her own, and after a moment to make sure she wasn't coming back out, the rest of the Titans went happily to bed.

Shadow sat down on the bottom bunk and extended her pointer finger claw. Leaning down, she wrapped her finger around her ankle so she could slice it in one motion. After doing this to her other ankle, both of her boots slid off easily and she set them under the bed. She took placed her now visible sword case beside the desk, her book on the bedside table, and climbed in for the night. As the darkness wrapped it's thick blanket of silence around the girl, she had one final thought that repeated itself over and over before succumbing to the night's sweet calling: How am I going to get out of here?

(A/N: Well there's chapter 9! Summer!! Finally! I took my snakes into school today Um, I can't really think of anything else to say, except please review!)


	10. Chapter 10

(A/N: Friday the 13th is when I started this I love that day! So, anywho, my birthday is on the twentieth and I'm turning 16 :) Um, my sister graduated 8th grade last night, and so did my friend. Ugh, I can't think of anything else so…here's chapter 10!)

The morning light brought with it warmth and promises. Promises of a good day, of happiness, and of peace. But not all promises are meant to be kept, or can be.

"I SAID LEAVE!"

"AND I SAID MAKE ME!" Came the shouts of two people from outside of a green room that had been horribly messy not too long ago. One was a female and dressed in black, and the other a male in colors of a traffic light.

"WHY CAN'T I BE ALONE FOR TEN SECONDS?" The one in black shouted at the other.

"BECAUSE YOU CAN'T BE TRUSTED!" The one brightly colored responded.

"Robin--" The girl growled in warning.

"Shadow, you already know this, and we've let up more than we should have just by bringing you here, and then letting you stay in one of our rooms with another Titan." The boy responded calmly, but not without malice.

"Believe me Robin, I know I'm pressing my luck. But, it's not only me you know. Beast Boy has a large hand in this mess. And he just keeps stirring."

"Arg! Are they _still_ fighting? I mean, it's been a week since we brought Shadow here. Shouldn't they have figured it out by now?" Cyborg asked from in the common room, where the others were and the shouting could be heard.

"At least they have quieted, no?" Starfire responded while clutching a frightened Silkie.

"I guess we can be thankful for that." Raven monotoned. She had given up trying to read or meditate in any part of the tower long ago.

"I realize this," Robin started.

"So why don't you do something about it? _You're_ the team's leader." Shadow challenged. Robin glared at the girl, but said nothing. "Thought so." She stepped into the green room. "And leave me alone!" She cried before slamming the automatic door. Robin stood firm for a moment before slumping, running a gloved hand down his face, sighing, and then going into the common room.

"Didn't go well?" Cyborg said more than asked as the doors slid open and in walked their leader.

"I'm sure you heard most of the conversation."

"Yeah, we did. But look on the bright side!" Beast Boy jumped up. "…um, uh, let me think…"

"Never mind. I'm just worried about Halloween being so soon. There's a full moon on that day too." Robin plopped down on the sofa.

"We all know what that means." Cyborg said.

"Yeah. Shadow gets her powers." Robin laid his head on the back of the sofa and closed his eyes. "We need to figure out if she's friend, foe, or neutral before then. Otherwise…" He trailed off.

"Shadow is, strange. But she is also, smart. We must not underestimate her as we did once, but she must not also underestimate us. Together we could be many great things, as we are separated. Against each other our anger will consume us, as it might for her. But we must also think about what is best for Shadow, and what she wants. For if we ignore that then there can be no hope of an alliance or trust." Nobody spoke after the alien princess had given her speech.

"Great job Starfire." Raven said, the surprise evident in her voice and upon her face. The princess blushed and giggled.

"I was merely stating the truth, was I not?" She asked.

"No Star, you're right. As far as I know, if you're dealing with an angry and scared animal, you be nice to it and make sure it knows it's not in danger before you ask for something from it in return, am I correct Beast Boy?" Robin asked. He nodded. "Alright, let's try out our theory. But watch for subtle signs of fear, anger, or discomfort when acting upon our knew tactic. Just because we don't want to make it worse by trying to make it better." Everyone nodded firmly. The alarm sounded suddenly and everybody, save for Shadow, rushed to the computer screen to find out what was happening. "There's a robbery at Jump City Bank. Possibly armed. Titans, Go!" Robin shouted and all but Starfire went to take care of the situation. It was always hard having to leave a team member behind, but they decided not to let Shadow out again unless approved by all, and _somebody_ had to keep and eye on her. Starfire decided to go try and talk to the dark girl, to try and strengthen and important bond. She wasn't entirely sure why it was important to gain Shadow Hunter's trust, but she had a strong feeling that it was in their best interest for the future.

When she arrived at Beast Boy's room, expecting to hear silence, she could hear music playing from the other side of the door. Deciding to listen to the lyrics a little before disturbing Shadow, she put an ear to the door.

"_You can't quit until you try_

_You can't live until you die_

_You can't learn to tell the truth_

_Until you learn to lie_

_You can't breathe until you choke_

_You gotta laugh when you're the joke_

_There's nothing like a funeral to make you feel alive_

_Just open your eyes_

_Just open your eyes_

_And see that life is beautiful_

_Will you swear on your life_

_That no one will cry_

_At my funeral?"_

Wanting to know more about what this song said, she decided to listen to the whole thing. It wasn't really Starfire's usual choice of music, but it was definitely interesting, and it could prove useful in getting to know Shadow more.

"_I know some things that you don't_

_I've done things that you won't_

_There's nothing like a trail of blood to find your way back home_

_I was waiting for my hearse_

_What came next was so much worse_

_It took a funeral to make me feel alive_

_Just open your eyes_

_Just open your eyes_

_And see that life is beautiful_

_Will you swear on your life_

_That no one will cry_

_At my funeral?_

_Alive_

_Just open your eyes_

_Just open your eyes_

_And see that life is beautiful_

_Will you swear on your life_

_That no one will cry_

_At my funeral?_

_Just open your eyes_

_Just open your eyes_

_And see that life is beautiful_

_Will you swear on your life_

_That no one will cry_

_At my funeral?"_

The song ended and Starfire took a moment to think about it. Apparently it was on the radio as some guy called Minute Mark came on and started talking about traffic and weather. There was a moment of what seemed to be channel surfing and static before everything was quiet. The princess took this chance and knocked softly. "Shadow? May I come in?" There was the sound of squeaking, what she presumed to be the girl sitting up in the bed.

"Why?" Her voice was guarded and mistrustful. It hurt Starfire to hear someone talk to her like that, but she just kept telling herself that this is how the girl grew up, to be mistrustful. Or that's what she gathered from what they'd been told.

"I merely wish to talk with you. We would all like to get to know you better." She responded cheerfully. There was a moment of silence before the door suddenly opened enough to show half a face and a guarded and mistrustful voice spoke again.

"Why?" Starfire had jumped back and yelped in shock, having heard nothing to suggest Shadow had moved, much less come over.

"I thought it would be nice to try and talk to you. Is, is this of the okay? I would very much like to come in and have the 'girl talk' with you." She pressed. The only response she received was that of a cold stare, but there she could tell the younger girl was thinking. Finally, after what seemed an eternity, she closed her eyes and sighed.

"Fine." Her lids shot open again to reveal her stunning eyes. "But no girl talk. Eck." The door opened all the way and she went back to the bed and sat down. Starfire entered the green room as well, though a little more cautiously than she normally would have. Everybody has instincts, even if they are buried so deep it takes a life-threatening event to bring them out, and Starfire's were telling the her that this was Shadow's territory, at the moment at least, and to be wary. She too sat down on the bottom bunk of the bed, and folded her hands in her lap. After a few seconds of awkward silence, at least to the alien, Shadow spoke up, still not looking at the young woman. "What did you want to talk about?" Starfire wasn't sure what to ask, so she decided to start with small questions and work her way up.

"What was that song you were listening to just earlier? I was going to speak to you when I heard it, and decided to listen." She forced herself to look at the black-haired beauty, and even then it took will to keep her gaze, despite the fact that her company was not looking at her.

"It's called 'Life is Beautiful' by SIXX: A.M. Kind of ironic in my opinion. But it's a good song. I can relate to it." Her sentences were short and to the point, but she was talking. And she had said more than just the basics; she had spoken her opinion, and that she related to it somehow. To Starfire, this was a good start.

"I thought it was a nice song too, even though I'm not entirely sure what it meant." She cocked her head slightly, also hoping to get an answer from her interviewee.

"What part are you confused about?" This time a glance was shared before green eyes once again looked to the door. Starfire actually understood most, if not all, of the song. But any conversation was better than none.

"What does he mean in the words 'I was waiting for my hearse, what came next was so much worse'?" This was a part she was a little confused about and did want to learn what it meant.

"I'm not entirely sure," Shadow admitted, "but I think it means that he was waiting for death. 'What came next was so much worse' could mean he became dead on the inside, because the next line 'it took a funeral to make me feel alive' means it took someone dying to, well, make him feel alive again. He realized he had been taking life for granted, and only a funeral made him notice this."

"I believe you are correct." Starfire nodded.

"Anything else?"

"Well, truly, I would like to know how you relate to the song. As you have said earlier." It had been easier to look at the girl when she was explaining the song, but now it became harder, though not quite as forceful. "Should we go line-by-line? To make it easier?" Starfire suggested after a long moment of silence.

"I suppose…why not. Give me a line and I'll tell you how it's linked to me."

Starfire shifted uncomfortably and looked down at her hands. "Truly, I do not recall most of the song." She was handed a piece of paper. "What is this?" She looked back over at Shadow.

"The lyrics. I wrote them down as I listened to it."

"Oh. I believe it should be good to start at the beginning. 'You can't quit until you try. You can't live until you die. You can't learn to tell the truth, until you learn to lie.' What do these mean?"

"You can't quit until you try. Simple as that. You can't truly appreciate life until you've died, either on the inside or actually. You can't know what honesty is, and how to be honest, until you've been and done the opposite. I've done all. Next?" She said quickly before the other girl could ask her about the last.

" 'You can't breathe until you choke. You gotta laugh when you're the joke. There's nothing like a funeral to make you feel alive.' "

"You can't appreciate breathing until you can't. when the world makes fun of you, you have to learn to make fun of yourself." There was a dark chuckle before the next words. "You can't feel alive until you've seen death in all it's glory." Her eyes gleamed with a hidden power and lust for something unknown, but whatever it was it scared Starfire. The room seemed to have grown very cold, and she was sure she could even see her breath. Goosebumps broke out all over her unprotected skin, and a chill went down her spine. The it was gone and everything went back to normal. Well, as normal as it could get talking to a black-hearted witch with a thirst for blood.

" 'Just open your eyes. Just open your eyes. And see that life is beautiful. Will you swear on your life, that no one will cry, at my funeral?' I believe this part is pretty, straight forward? Is this how you say it?" Shadow nodded.

"Well the first two lines are obvious. Open your eyes. Life is beautiful, well, it _can_ be. If I were to have friends, I would make them swear not to cry at my funeral. Because my life is not worth crying over, as most lives aren't." The bluntness of this message and rejection of worth of her own life shocked Starfire to a point where she had to speak out.

"I am sure your life _is_ worth crying over when it comes to an end. And I hope that this is not soon, for although you are cold and dark, and seem to have no value for _our_ lives, we value yours." She made to rest a hand on the girl's shoulder, and shoved away the pain and sadness when she jerked away.

"Why? I've done nothing to give you any reason to like me, let alone value my worthless life. In fact, I've done the exact opposite. And yet you still continue to put up with me and treat me with, is it kindness? So, my simple question to everything you do, have done, or are planning to do is why? Unless you have a good answer, then can we finish the song? Or do you not care anymore?" She snapped at the older female. The hurt was evident in the young woman's eyes, but this did nothing to Shadow. If anything it made her happier, not that happiness could be achieved. Starfire wanted to just get up and go to her room, but she knew this would be rude. She was starting to hate the plan she came up with however, as it seemed they were getting nowhere and their "guest" was just getting meaner and stranger. Despite the urge to just run away, Starfire held strong and read the next lyrics.

" 'I know some things that you don't. I've done things that you won't. There's nothing like a trail of blood to find your way back home.'"

"I know things that you don't. I've done a lot of things that you won't. And the last line pretty much sums up my job. Which I'm not telling you about." She added quickly before the alien could ask.

"You already explained what the next lines mean so I suppose we are finished." Starfire handed the paper back and stood up. "I think I shall leave now." She headed for the door.

" 'Kay." Was the only response. When Starfire left Shadow got up and turned off the light, bathing the room in partial darkness. There wasn't a curtain over the window yet, much to her annoyance, so there was still some light in the room. Shadow wasn't very tired, in fact she felt wide awake, but she decided to take a nap anyway. Heck, an early rest gives you more energy anyway, so why not? She did the same routine as last night, but this time she sliced her outfit to make a "t-shirt" and long shorts. After some consideration she made it a two-piece by simply cutting a line around her waist. She climbed under the covers and closed her eyes, realizing she was more tired than she thought. Her lids became heavy and she drifted off into nothingness.

When the rest of the Titans returned they were more exhausted than one would think. The reason was that the robbers _were_ armed, but not only that, they had Mumbo on their side. A challenge by himself, the battle was only worsened by bullets being fired as well as spells. Raven discovered a loophole, though. A truck hauling tons of fishing supplies had been stopped in the chaos, and there was a large net used for tuna or other large fish. When this was thrown on top of the criminals, the robbers couldn't move and Mumbo's wand became so entangled he couldn't use it to escape. Normally they would have been just a little tired out, but then Cinderblock and Plasmus were trying to free prisoners again, and this time they thought to bring in Starfire and Shadow. Cyborg was knocked into a brick building being constructed nearby, and it fell on the two villains, giving the Titans enough time to recover the unconscious man and concrete…thing. Cyborg was unharmed for the most part, his metal parts sustaining little damage.

So it was needless to say they were ready for a lot of rest when they got back to their giant T. All of them went straight to their beds, in fact, rather than stay up for dinner or anything. It was also dark out, which made them even more aware of how tired they were. Starfire demanded to know the details and continuously spoke of her worry about Robin's injuries, which weren't that bad after Raven helped.

Beast Boy sluggishly made his way to his room. He was so tired he could barely see straight, and was stumbling every-now-and-then. Finally he made it to the door and slid it open. He didn't feel like climbing up to his usual place on the top bunk, and instead slipped of his shoes and gloves and slid into the bottom. He smiled as he got comfortable, and began to drift off into dreamland. That is, until, he heard faint breathing from next to him. At first this didn't register in his exhausted brain, but then he suddenly remembered who was currently sleeping in his room with him. Beast Boy's eyes shot wide open and he did his best not to shriek in fear. He calmed his breathing to almost normal before gently peeling the covers back to reveal Shadow, facing him, still asleep. He sighed internally in relief before trying to slip back out of the bed. He froze suddenly and squeezed his eyes tight when he felt her move and make a noise of some sort. After what seemed like hours but was only seconds, he slowly opened his eyes, thinking she was going to be staring at him and mad as hell. Instead, to his surprise, Shadow was still asleep. Finding it odd but thanking his luck, he tried once more, only to stop again and quickly pull the covers over his head. Shadow had sat up, slowly and only propped up on her left elbow, but she was still awake. Or, kinda. She looked around briefly, sniffed the air and cocked her head, and then plopped back onto the bed, falling asleep quickly once again.

Poor Beast Boy's heart was racing a mile a minute when he dared to come back out from under the covers. Sadly, he now realized there was no getting back out of this predicament without Shadow finding out he was there in the first place. _Definitely _not something he wanted to happen. Resigned to his fate, Beast Boy tried to do his best to get comfortable. _'Alright, I can do this. All I have to do is stay still, and stay quiet. Yeah. I'm doomed! She's going to wake up when I'm still sleeping here, __**if**__ I can get to sleep, and murder me. Why did I have to forget she was in here in the first place? Okay, hush, just, just try and go to sleep. Or at least relax. Maybe she won't figure out I'm here before I can leave in the morning. Oh crap! She wakes up at like, five a.m., and I wake up somewhere around noon! I'm a dead man, I'm a dead man, I'm a dead m--'_ His thoughts were interrupted as he felt movement next to him. At first he thought she had just turned over or something, but when he looked closer Beast Boy found out that she had moved closer to him, and was shivering lightly. _'Why is she shivering? It's not cold in here, and the blankets are warm. Shit she did it again!'_ Indeed the dark girl had again moved closer to the green teen, and there was now very little space between the two. Beast Boy was struggling to remain calm in hopes she wouldn't wake up, but those hopes were diminishing as she continued to move closer with nowhere for him to go. _'She must be trying to get to my body heat, even though there's no reason for her to be cold. Unless she's sick? She didn't look sick, so what could it b--'_ He almost shrieked when she finally made contact with him. Beast Boy was now praying to whatever gods there may be out there to let him live through the night. He had turned on his side when she first started moving closer, and now with no place to go but down and to the grave, and with a likely cause of his own death merely inches from him, his nerves were at their ends. He breathed slowly through his nose until he was somewhat calm again. By then she had moved down slightly and closer to him. Again Beast Boy wondered just what she was doing, that was until she laid her ear against his chest where his heart was. He was glad she was asleep and it was dark, otherwise his blush might have been seen. _'Um, okay…she wanted heat and I guess likes the sound of my heart. Interesting whoa! Too close there! But of course she isn't going to move…' _Shadow had turned on her back enough to still have her ear against Beast Boy's heart, but her knees were bent and her arms folded in so that she was placed in between his own knees and his chin. Then something else happened, something Beast Boy mistook for nerves at first; she began to purr lightly. It amazed him that she did this all in her sleep, and actually thought for an insane moment of trying to ask her if she was really awake. Of course that would be suicide, but he really did wonder for a moment. _'Aw, cute. Wait, did I just say that? I mean, sure, I guess she is, but…no, it's not allowed. Or, at least according to Robin, no! what am I thinking?'_ She shifted in her sleep again and Beast Boy smiled. He carefully laid his arm down, making sure to touch her as little as possible. _'She is cute though, especially when she's sleeping. Her past, her wounds both physical and emotional, her pain, all of that is gone. I think she's even smiling a little. This can't be only because it's that time of year. But, could I have a crush? Maybe, but she'd never feel the same for me.'_ He felt her suddenly let out a large breath and not retrieve it for a while. This scared him and he was about to risk his life and try to wake her up in an attempt to get her breathing again when she did it on her own. But her face contorted into that of pain and discomfort. She began to squirm a little and he could tell she was having a nightmare. He figured she was probably just going to take a nap and hadn't bothered to take her pills and instead had fallen asleep. Deciding to risk it all, he moved his left arm and gently stroked her side, trying to wake her up or comfort her. He had bad nightmares too sometimes, and didn't think anybody deserved to suffer through one. Especially when they didn't have to. Instead of waking up, Shadow stopped squirming and slowly settled back into the position she had been in earlier, again starting to purr lightly. Beast Boy was astonished. That simple gesture of comfort and her dream had subsided. A sense of pride filled him and rather than remove his arm again, he left it there. _'But trying couldn't harm anything, right?'_ With that thought in mind he drifted off to sleep, Shadow lying peacefully beside him.

(A/N: Well thee you have it : ) Beware the fluffiness! I had an awesome birthday. I received a Wal-Mart gift card from my dad (hadn't spoken to in a year previously) worth 150. Sweet. And then from other people I got 110 total. My party was cool too : ) Except that one of my guests was/is having problems at home and there was a three-way fight during the night between me, my sister, and our friend. I also woke up sore and with a major headache (weird because I never get them), which lasted until today. What was cool was that we had some unexpected guests come over for the water balloon fight. Actually we invited them, but they weren't originally on the guest list. Which is fine, though the oldest was 19. He he, we also tortured Kent, so he's probably never coming back, although he's invited for my sister's too. 0.o He wouldn't leave the room when we gave him a chance, and when he did leave he came back 0.o Oh well, overall it was a great 2 day party ! R&R Please!)


	11. Chapter 11

_(A/N: Well here is chapter 11 of __TDIM__! Thanks for all the reviews! Oh, and for those out there who keep referring to Beast Boy as a changeling in their stories, obviously you don't know what the word actually means. "__A child __secretly__exchanged__ for another in __infancy__" usually by imps. He's not a changeling, he's a shape shifter.)_

_Morning came once again, coming later and later everyday. Soon it would be afternoon when it became dark and closer to noon when the sun arose. All the better for those who are nocturnal. The sun's weakened rays shown through the window of a small, green bedroom. The bottom bunk of the bed contained two figures, both sleeping peacefully snuggled up to each other. One, the female, had jet black hair, striking emerald green eyes with a red ring around the iris beneath her closed eyelids and pale skin. The other, the male, had dark green skin with darker hair. His eyes were also emerald green beneath his closed eyelids. The male called Beast Boy, of the superhero group known as the Teen Titans, awoke slowly and blinked a couple times. He attempted to roll over and go back to sleep, seeing as it was only 10 o'clock in the morning, and when this failed he looked under the covers to see what had stopped him. There he found the girl, still in the same position she was in last night, and fear struck his heart for a moment before he realized what his stupid mistake had resulted in the night before. He smiled at the memory, and then fear struck him again as he realized there was sunlight, meaning it was way after 5 in the morning. Had she woken up and found out? Probably not since she was still close to him and not wandering the halls. Either way now, he had to get out of the bed at least before she __did_ wake up and find him there. The thought of moving away from her saddened him, but he wasn't willing to risk more than he had to stay near her. At least not yet. He removed his arm from her and thought that this was it when she inhaled sharply. Instead of opening her eyes though, she simply rolled over and stretched out alongside him. Beast Boy couldn't help but think of a large snake measuring its food before deciding to turn into a fly. _'And why hadn't I thought of this earlier? Oh, right, fear clouded my mind. Well, at least I got to have an experience I might never have again.'_ He thought sadly as he transformed back into himself on the floor. This sudden noise woke the dark beauty and she sat up to look around frantically.

"Heh. Morning?" Beast Boy asked nervously. Now he was even more confused about why she hadn't woken up when he was in the bed with her. Dirty thoughts be gone! Shadow ignored him and glanced at the clock sleepily, her eyes widening when she saw the time. As if to confirm the clock was right, she swiftly turned her attention to the window, then back to the clock, tilting her head. "Is something wrong?" She stared at the clock intently for a moment and Beast Boy was about to ask again, thinking he didn't hear him. The she shrugged and laid back down, pulling the covers over her.

When the green shape shifter entered the common room, he was met with both Robin and Cyborg glaring at him with their arms crossed. "What did I do?" He asked, backing up. Raven and Starfire now looked up from what they were doing with interest.

"Come with us." Robin said and both older males dragged the younger out of the room and to the camera room.

"What are we doing here?" Beast Boy asked when he saw where they were.

"Sit." Robin commanded and pointed to a chair in front of a monitor. Beast Boy did as told.

"Hey, this is my room! I thought we turned those off." He turned to Cyborg.

"We turned them back on when Shadow started sharing a room with you." He continued when he saw Beast Boy's expression of 'why'. "We felt you were trying to get too close to our 'guest', and for good reason." Robin pointed to another monitor close by and pushed play. It was what the camera had recorded the night before and this morning. Beast Boy blushed in embarrassment and then in anger.

"Look, that wasn't intentional okay? What do you think I was trying to do? Get some action?" The moment the words left his lips he regretted them at the look his teammates gave him.

"Were you?" Cyborg asked.

"No! God, didn't you see that I was terrified? I was so tired that I forgot she was there and just wanted to go to bed. And then when I tried to get back out, she kept moving and I was worried she'd wake up and kill me!" Why didn't they believe him?

"So why didn't you turn into a fly like you did this morning?" Robin accused.

"My brain was working on empty and being afraid didn't exactly help, okay?"

"No, not okay. From now on I think you should--" Robin was interrupted by an alarm, but not the usual one of trouble in the city. This one meant something was wrong in the tower, most likely an intruder. Robin started checking all the screens in case what was wrong was on one, and was about to go to the common room for the computer, when he spotted something at the top of the stairs leading to the roof. It was a thin figure dressed in black, and it was picking the lock on the door. "Shadow." Their leader growled. He grabbed his communicator. "Raven, Starfire, to the roof. Shadow's trying to escape I bet." He closed it with a snap and the men were off, after one last glare at Beast Boy, who lingered behind for a moment.

"Shut up." Shadow snapped at the alarm. "Sheesh, I just want a little fresh air and be able to see the sun." She stopped her tinkering for a moment. "Well, that's part of it." The lock clicked and she stood up. The door to the roof was a normal door, so that if something went wrong with the tower's electronics they could at least get to the roof. Shadow heard the annoying alarm shut off and knew they would be here soon. "At least my ears aren't ringing anymore." She opened the door and quickly shut it again with a hiss and cringe. "My eyes have gotten so used to the dark…" She trailed off and quickly put on her sunglasses before opening the door again, this time with more caution. She stepped out onto the roof and began looking around her like a kid in a new candy store. When she was in the middle of the roof she stopped and put a hand on the side of her glasses, trying to decide whether to take them off or not. Finally resolving to take them off to see the outside world more clearly, she winced as the weak light struck at her sensitive eyes once more. Gradually her eyes adjusted and she was able to take in every detail with ease. Shadow inhaled the air deeply, a light smile forming upon her features. Her moment of actual happiness was cut short, however, as the Titans came bursting through the door. Her cat-like ears flattened and stood out of her black hair.

"What are you doing up here?" Robin asked nastily.

"Dancing. What does it look like I'm doing?"

"It looks like you're trying to escape when under house arrest." Robin said, his arms crossed. A low growl came from their detainee.

"That wasn't my original plan but sure." She too crossed her arms and her ears once again.

"So what _was_ your original plan?" Cyborg asked.

"I came out to see the sun and breathe fresh air. Or is that against the law too?" Her challenge was sent directly at Robin, whose scowl only deepened.

"No." He replied plainly. The sun had been hiding behind clouds since Shadow went up, and now it shown through all the way. The girl gave a grunt of pain and quickly turned her head, making her hair fall into her face. She brought up her sunglasses, but then she stared hard at them for a moment rather than put them on. Shadow put them back and then shook her hair away to stare directly into the sun. Her eyes were squinted, and it was obvious the light was hurting them, but she did not look away, her face set in determination.

"What is she doing?" Beast Boy whispered to the others. They shrugged, though all has some sort of idea. After a small while Shadow's eyes opened to normal and she turned away.

"Why did you do that?" Raven asked.

"I haven't seen the sun, other than out a window for the time I've been here, in years. Therefore my eyes have become very sensitive to light. I made that sensitivity go away for the moment. Although there is now a large white dot in your place."

"You haven't seen the sun in years?" Robin repeated in shock.

"But the sun is such a beautiful sight! Why have you not viewed its wonders in such a long amount of time?" Starfire asked.

"Is that why your skin is pale? Other than the make-up that is." Cyborg questioned.

"Yes, because I was not allowed to, and no. There is a different reason for that, one which I am not going to speak about." Shadow confirmed.

"What about when you got out and went missing for a couple days?" Beast Boy asked, remembering how he had found her and pushing the blush away. She shook her head sadly.

"I was hiding in a run-down warehouse until I needed _something_ to eat. Then you found me. You lied to me. I _knew_ there was something wrong with you, and now I know what it was." Shadow sneered at him. He flinched away.

"What are you talking about?" Cyborg asked.

"Uh, well remember how I told you guys about what happened between us in the park? Or rather Robin told you. Well, I kinda didn't tell her that I was human." Beast Boy said while looking at his fiddling fingers.

"You aren't human. Robin is human, the rest of you aren't." All of them gave her a look of hatred. Cyborg because he didn't like being told he was different, Beast Boy for the same, Starfire because Shadow was insulting her friends in her opinion, Raven for both reasons, and Robin because of Starfire's reason.

"It does not matter, we are all people." Starfire said.

"Yeah, well, I'm not. And I never want to be, not again." The last two words were very quiet. "So, since you're all being hostile and I don't want to be here," Shadow turned towards the edge, "bye!" She started running for the end of the roof.

"Shadow, wait! Don't do it!" Robin cried as the team rushed after her.

"You'll hit the rocks!" Cyborg cried and picked up his pace. Beast Boy turned into a hawk and flew ahead of her, landing a good ten feet before the edge, directly in her path. Shadow didn't have time to stop properly, and it didn't help that she had looked behind her shoulder right before he transformed back into himself.

"Whoa!" She cried as she ran into him, knocking them both over. Just like when she collided with him outside of the bathroom, he instinctively wrapped his arms around her to try and prevent her from getting away. Shadow bared her teeth and the red rim had grown to consume just under half of her whites. "Let go of me now." Her voice rumbled with a hidden rage, and despite his fear, Beast Boy held on.

"No. Can't we just try to sort this out?" Shadow extended the claws of her right hand and proceeded to try and puncture his face with them, leaving indents in the roof when he moved. "Alright, alright!" He let go of her and she stood up, glaring down at him. The other Titans had caught up and now formed a half circle behind her.

"I trusted you." Her voice hadn't changed.

"You did?" Beast Boy asked.

"Yes." She hissed. "And you lied to me." Beast Boy started to get up.

"I didn't mean to, honest."

"Prove it." He looked up at her with shock, then down in embarrassment.

"I, uh…" He stammered, not wanting to tell her about what went on inside his head when he was the tiger.

"I knew it." She scoffed. "Just like all the others. I thought you were different, I thought you had promise." She paused and looked out at the bay for a moment. "I was beginning to trust all of you…" Shadow turned back to the Titans. "Just forget I ever existed. Trust me, it'll do you good." And with that she leaped off the edge of the roof.

"No!" Was the general panicked cry as all of them rushed to the edge, hoping to get to Shadow before she splattered on the jagged rocks below. Robin looked over the edge just as a splash came from the water, just beyond the dangerous earth fragments. They watched for a moment, not sure whether to go down and try to find her, or if she was even still alive. Seeing as no body came to the surface they were feeling a little better about the chances Shadow was still living, but then again they hadn't seen any sign of her for several minutes.

"Raven, I want you to do a search for anything that might say Shadow's still down there. Beast Boy, search the waters, she might have been knocked unconscious. Cyborg, let me know if you get a heartbeat. Starfire and I will try to see if we can find anything about Shadow from news records, hospital reports, anything that might say how Slade was further involved. Go!" The Titans set out to accomplish the jobs they had been assigned, and all hoped something would be found.

TT

The Titans had been searching for information on or Shadow herself, and with no luck. All they knew was Slade was involved with her scars and her life, she went by Shadow Hunter, and she had immense powers that would return at midnight on Halloween. Seeing as they didn't know a lot about Slade, they couldn't find out information through anything about her. They tried to look up information about myths of All Hallows Eve online, but didn't find anything relating to what they needed. Even her book that she left behind didn't leave much information because they had no idea why it was important. They did find a note tucked neatly between its pages written in black ink with a gothic style.

_Teen Titans,_

_As you may have already figured out, this is Shadow writing, and if you're reading this then I'm either gone or dead. Most likely the former. I have probably already explained that I was beginning to trust you if you caught me. If not, then yes it's true. Your…kindness and persistence to gain my own trust is what did it. Also the fact that I can relate to two of your teammates in unique ways. But I can relate to all of you in one way of another._

_I have left because although your home is comfortable in some ways, and the inhabitants are hospitable, I cannot stay here. Not just in your home, or in the city, or even the country. I am seeking out a childhood place, if you must know, because I have never, do not, and will never fit into your society. I have always been an outcast, and have learned why. The book I have left behind, my sword case and its contents will help you to learn more about me if you wish to and know the correct ways of deciphering their messages. After midnight in two day's time you may contact me anytime you wish, if you want to. If this is so then send a blue jay with a red flower to find me. This way I'll know it's from you, and not just another bird come to visit. I will then tell you how to stay in touch and perhaps send you another way to learn more about me. Please realize that what I have already told you is a great privilege to know without having to pay the ultimate price for it. I thank you for all that you have done. Until we meet again._

_Shadow Hunter_

All of them thought on the note's messages for a moment after it had been read aloud by Robin.

"So…what do we do?" Cyborg asked.

"I'm not sure." Robin said. He put the note back down on the book.

"Are we even sure we want to learn more about her? Somehow I think if we do then we're getting into something far larger than we could imagine." Raven said. The book was still lying open and a breeze from the open window rustled to pages. When they fluttered still there was a picture spread across both pages that intrigued the teens. It was of a female with black hair and green eyes, with red around the iris. Her arms were outstretched with the palms up. There was what appeared to be black fire sprouting from them. She was astride a large black horse, riding bareback and without a halter or anything else to suggest it was tame. The horse's mane, tail, and hooves looked like they were on fire or made of it, and its eyes were blood red. All around there were animals of various sorts, along with a cat-like creature none of them recognized. Above all this was a night sky with a full moon, barely covered by dark clouds. Then they noticed the strangest thing of all. There appeared to be a very small man that all of the animals and the girl were glaring at. He was cowering and vainly pointing a gun at the immense and angry creatures that seemed to be moving towards him. The artistry was beautifully done and it was obvious whoever had done it put a lot of effort into making the picture colorful and precise.

"Is that…?" Beast Boy trailed off.

"Shadow? I believe it is." Starfire finished.

"Wow. The details are just…wow." Raven stammered stupidly.

"But what is the message? What is the picture trying to tell the observers?" Cyborg said.

"Hmm. Maybe--Will someone shut that window?!" Robin exclaimed as the wind once again shifted the pages. Starfire flew over and brought the pesky window closed, ending the wind's influence. This time there were words on one side of the paper and another, less detailed, picture on the other. The words appeared to be a poem entitled "Bring Forth the Dragon." On the other page there was a silhouette of a girl. One of her hands was again raised and sprouting fire. The other was also raised, but sported long, thick claws. It was more sketchy and only done in black, but they were definitely not the same claws Shadow always showed. Above the girl, and seeming to come out of her, was the image of a large dragon head breathing fire. Its eyes were drawn so that it was obvious to be angry. At what they didn't know, but so far every animal seemed to be pissed about something. Then Raven read the poem out loud, not sure if she pronounced some of the words right, but she thought she got most of them right.

"Hex na colorth. Melaki norku obsten. Nortula exporat enclu, furnista wingata devibla! Bring forth the dragon 'twas born in Hell. Wreaking havoc from near to far, casting its fiery spell. With wings of leather and claws of steal, don't close your eyes all this is real. He flies through buildings, burns down homes. The only thing he'll leave is tombs. Don't try to stop him, you never will. For this dragon is invincible! Hex na colorth. Melaki norku obsten. Nortula exporat enclu, furnista wingata devibla!" Immediately after reciting the strange words, the only recognizable being 'Hex', Raven felt an odd chill and sudden surge of her demon blood as if the spell awoke her demon side and was calling it out. "I need to meditate. Badly." She said before hurrying through the doors to her room.

"Raven?" Robin asked, but she was already gone. "I think this should be put away for now." He said sternly and closed the book. When he did a strap shot from the back and clasped itself on the front to a lock, sealing its contents from the world. When he tried to open it again it proved futile. Even Cyborg or Starfire couldn't break the lock without risking damage to the old script. After studying the lock all they found was a hole in the middle, clearly not for a key unless it was cylindrical. Their leader sighed and looked out the window, then to the clock. "How about we call it a night?" He suggested and everybody there seconded it before heading off to their quarters.

Raven had been meditating for hours before she finally felt calm again. She floated down to her bed and opened her eyes. Glancing at the clock Raven discovered it was midnight, and the others were most likely in bed. She hadn't received much information from her emotions, and she was not about to read the passage again. Raven decided a cup of herbal tea and a good night's rest should to the trick in getting back to normal. With that thought she headed out to the kitchen.

The dark witch was sitting at the table and sipping her tea when the sound of a helicopter arose. She looked at the large windows just in time to be almost blinded by a white light shinning through and searching the room. As she shielded her eyes, it settled on Raven for a moment before going down towards the bedrooms and bathroom. "They're searching for something." She said and called Robin on her communicator.

Robin was in the middle of a dream about taking Starfire to the park on a warm summer day. He had just asked her if she wanted some ice cream from the vendor. Starfire opened her mouth to reply, but to Robin it sounded like beeping. "I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" His dream self asked. Again there was beeping, but this time it started before dream Starfire opened her mouth. He groggily awoke to find his communicator yelling at him. He picked it up and opened the screen to find Raven staring at him. He glanced at the clock before replying. "What is it?"

"There's a helicopter searching for something in the tower. It just went towards the bedroom floors. I suggest the others know about it and we all find out just what it is they're looking for." The connection was closed and Robin jumped up to alert the others. After doing so he rushed to the window. Sure enough a blinding white light came into his window and he ducked out of the way. It lingered there for a moment after searching the room and then moved on towards Starfire's room.

"I think I'll pay them a little visit to find out just what it is they're searching for at this hour."

(A/N: Cliffy : ) I'm guessing some of you, if not all, can already guess what the copter is searching for. But I doubt any of you will guess how to open the book. If you do, cookies and cake for you! Oh, and what do you guys think of the pictures? I wrote that passage myself a while ago. Other than hex the only words that for sure mean something are furnista: fire breathing, wingata: winged, devibla: devil. Please review and I hope you enjoy!)


	12. Chapter 12

_(A/N: Well here is the next chapter of __TDIM__. Hm, I sense little enthusiasm. I must be tired. Yep, very tired. At least it's not 100 degrees anymore 0.o Bad humans for causing Global Warming, bad! Seriously, I'm used to between 90 and 30. 80 is just fine. Oh, __**'This means voices in Shadow's head other than her own'**_ Onwards! -slaps the reins of the horses moving the carriage of words to become a story-)

The Titans met in the common room before heading up to the roof. They only had to wait a few minutes before the helicopter made its way back up and began searching the roof.

"Hey!" Robin began waving at the machine to try and get the pilot's attention. It seemed to work as the light soon shone upon the Titans. But when it did the chopper turned and began to quickly make its way back towards town. "Not so fast." Robin shot out his grappling hook and it wrapped around the copter's skids and pulled him up. Not quite knowing what they should do, the other Titans made their way to the edge of the roof, prepared to help their leader if he needed it.

Robin carefully made his way towards the cockpit. The side of the cockpit was open, allowing access for a quick descent or better aim if shooting. It also allowed Robin something to hold onto when he got there. There were two men in the cockpit, one obviously the pilot. The other didn't seem to have a specific purpose, other than maybe direct the pilot if they found what they were looking for. What that was Robin was determined to find out. Especially if they had to look in his tower for it. "Hey! I'm talking to you!" He had to shout to be heard over the wind and the rotors. The second guy looked at the pilot first, but when he shrugged the man looked to his right, only to spot something that wouldn't normally be there. Robin.

"What are you… Get off kid!" He shouted at the Boy Wonder, wondering how the hell he got up there in the first place.

"What were you looking for?" Robin demanded. There was no room for him to climb into the cockpit, and even if there was, the guy didn't look like he was about to move. He turned back to the pilot and said something that Robin couldn't hear. It became apparent what he said when the helicopter began to rock back and forth. "Knock it off! I can't--" He slipped.

The Titans gave a collective gasp as their leader lost his footing high up above the tower. They breathed a sigh of relief when he regained it, and it looked like he did too.

"We've got to get him down." Raven said, summoning her powers.

"No." Starfire put a hand on Raven's shoulder. "He will be fine. I am sure of it." She said confidently, but there was worry in her voice.

Robin held on tight to the support bar attached to the frame of the open cockpit. _'Okay, not the friendly type.'_ Thinking he had fallen the two men were heading back to wherever they had come from, and were now over the middle of the bay. Robin decided to go under the helicopter and to the pilot's side. "Alright, now I want some answers." He said as he stood up on the other side. Upon seeing him again, the man made the copter hover.

"How did you…who…what do you want?" He finally settled on a question.

"I want to know why you were snooping around my home in the middle of the night." After the two men looked at each other, probably deciding whether to try and throw him off again, the pilot turned back to Robin, who was now blocking the doorway.

"Have any of you seen a girl with jet black hair and red 'n' green eyes? Possibly dressed in a black suit?" He asked the Titan. He knew who they were talking about. But if he wanted a chance of knowing more he couldn't tell them right off the bat.

"Why are you searching for her?" Thinking that being a hero he might help them, but not wanting to say everything, the pilot responded vaguely.

"She's very dangerous and we were sent to find her. She escaped from our facility."

"Who do you work for?"

"That's classified. Have you seen her?" He pressed.

"No." Robin shook his head. "But we'll be sure to keep an eye out for her. Is there a number we can call if she turns up?" It might lead to tracking down who Shadow was hiding from. Again they turned to each other, this time for longer. The passenger flicked his eyes at the teen before turning his gaze to the pilot again. Taking something from the other man, the pilot handed the boy a card. There was a number on it, but no name or anything else. A plain white card with plain black numbers.

"You'll probably have to leave a message. That is _if_ she turns up." Robin nodded and then called for Starfire to get him, seeing as the men weren't going to drop him off again.

"We'll let you know." Starfire carried him back to the roof and set him down safely.

"So what did they want?" Cyborg asked, coming over to him.

"Yeah, that bright light woke me up." Beast Boy grumbled.

"And it almost blinded me." Raven joined in the complaining.

"They were looking for Shadow." Robin said gravely.

It was now the afternoon of Halloween and Starfire was busy finishing her decorating. Once every half hour from 6 to 9 the ferry brought trick-or-treaters over to the tower for some candy. The Titans would be all dressed up and the tower was decked out. They had started doing this a couple of years ago when a family thought they would see if their town's saviors would have anything to give to their kids. The Titans weren't prepared however, and rather than send them off empty handed, Starfire offered to give them one thing from each Titan for taking the trouble to come over. Beast Boy ended up losing his new game when the little boy saw it, Cyborg lost a part to the car because the husband claimed he needed it, Raven gave the girl one of her books that she'd read, Starfire gave the wife some cosmetics, and Robin gave one of his masks to the younger boy. Since then they've been prepared. It was still an hour before the first ferry would drop of kids at their door; the tower was pretty much decorated; they had plenty of candy and other small treats; but Starfire was still zooming around, making sure every last detail was attended to.

"Starfire I think we're good." Robin chuckled as she flew past again.

"But Friend Robin, I have not yet put up the plastic winged rodents." She said sweetly. They looked at her oddly before Raven translated.

"I think she means fake bats." Starfire thanked her and then quickly flew off again. He shook his head at her energy and enthusiasm. The Titans seemed in good spirits, but one thing was on all of their minds: Shadow gets her powers back at midnight.

The trick-or-treaters came and went, and soon it was nearing midnight. The Titans were spent, and so was the candy.

"Aww, I wanted some." Beast Boy wined when he saw the large bowl was empty.

"It was for the kids in the first place." Raven said. She didn't really dress up like the others, but her friends had convinced her to do something. So she had put on a witch's hat and made her face up a little with Starfire's help. It was enough to tell what she was supposed to be, but other than that she didn't do much. People already thought she was creepy, and she wasn't into the fairy princess thing. Starfire was, though, and she donned white wings, a long lavender dress, little swirls around her eyes and cheeks, and ribbons in her hair. Robin was dressed as a vampire complete with fake fangs, pale face, cloak, and mask. Beast Boy was a zombie. His green color helped complete the rotting skin effect. And Cyborg decided to dress up as a professional football player. All in all they had a fun night, made only better by the fact no villain decided to crash the nationwide party.

Raven looked out the window suddenly as the clock said it was only a few minutes to midnight.

"What is it?" Cyborg asked, seeing her look out. Now the other Titans did the same.

"I feel a sudden surge in energy, as if the atmosphere was waiting for something to happen. An electric feeling. Like right before a lightning storm." Raven informed them.

"I feel it too." Beast Boy said, his animal instincts picking up on it. The rest of the team nodded that they felt it too. Far away from the city itself laid a large forest. It had been ruined by a fire many years back, but now the trees and wildlife had come back full force. Their attention was drawn in its direction, and as the clock struck midnight they knew why. A flash of white shot up from somewhere towards the middle. The large stream assumed a form, that of a dragon, before dissipating back into the forest.

"Shadow." They all murmured at once.

"Find her." Robin commanded and ripped off his costume to reveal his uniform beneath.

"Do you ever where just normal clothes?" Beast Boy commented, but their leader was already headed to the garage. The others rushed after him, and soon they were speeding to the forest in search of their escapee.

Earlier

Once Shadow had arrived back on land, she had run as fast as she could to get far away. She knew she couldn't go far, not with the time her powers came back being so soon. She needed to be close to the bay when that happened to get where she was going in the least amount of time. So she had gone far into the forest near the humans' city and climbed into a large tree. The most she had to worry about up here was the occasional bug and maybe a curious cougar. On Halloween night she couldn't rest, and ended up swinging between the branches and doing acrobatic moves just to get rid of some extra energy. But as it neared midnight nothing would help, so she began preparing her body and mind through meditation for the sudden surge in power. When it the time came and everything came rushing back at once, there was a flash of light and she passed out when it disappeared.

Now

When Shadow came to she was in a bright room. As her eyes adjusted she found it was the Titans' medical bay…again. "What the--?" She started to sit up, but a large hand gently pushed her back down. She glared at what she saw to be Cyborg. But rather than being angry, he seemed pleased. "Why am I back here?" She demanded.

"We found you in the forest out cold. Robin figured we should bring you back here to make sure you weren't hurt."

"Robin? You're joking." Cyborg allowed her to sit up on an elbow to look at him better. There were a few sensors on her, but not a lot. He shook his head.

"I think he's finally figured out that you're not evil, just different." He sat down in a chair next to the bed.

"Then he needs to rethink the line between different and evil, because as far as _I'm_ concerned, I'm on the latter side from what your messed up society describes 'evil' as." She closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again Cyborg was staring directly at her.

"Why do you think you're evil?" He asked her.

"Many reasons. What I am, what I'm hiding within me, what I've done, what I'm going to do in a few years, the list goes on and on. And don't ask me to explain any of those reasons. You won't get an answer." She added quickly. He nodded and moved back.

"I understand. It's your business." Shadow was facing away from the door when it opened to reveal Beast Boy carrying a plate of waffles.

"Hey Cy, I thought I'd bring you--" He wasn't able to finish his sentence as Shadow whipped around, brought up a hand, and covered the poor boy in black energy very similar to Raven's. It disappeared when the girl saw who it was, but there was a bit of hesitation. Cyborg got over his shock enough to get up and go over to his best friend, who was now shivering so bad he almost dropped the dish.

"Are you alright B?" He asked, taking the food and putting it on a table.

"I-I-I'm not-t s-sure." He chattered. Even his breath was visible, but it was fading. His skin was paler as well, but the color was coming back. In a few minutes he was back to normal, though a little nervous at the way Shadow was glaring at him and what she had done.

"What happened?" He asked Beast Boy.

"I don't know. I came in to give you those waffles, and then everything went black. And I felt like I was back at the North Pole, only in nothing but my boxers."

"Interesting." The metal teen muttered. They discovered the food to be completely frozen, and barely thawing out. Both merely stared at the girl for a moment.

"Should I go tell the others that she's awake?" Beast Boy said.

"Actually I think I will. You two have some problems to sort out." He took the plate with him and didn't see the two glares sent at him. The door hissed closed and Beast Boy turned around to face the newly empowered female that was pissed at him.

"So, I, uh…" He trailed off and sat down next to her nervously. To his surprise a smirk overcame the girl's features. "What?"

"I can smell your fear." She said. Beast Boy's eyes widened slightly.

"Oh. Well you scare me." He said, and immediately slapped a hand over his mouth in fear that he'd said something to anger her further.

"As I do most if not all." She sat up and swung her legs over the edge to look at him straight on. She peeled off the few sensors, but an alarm didn't sound this time. Everything was quiet for a few minutes, and to the shifter the silence was awkward and unbearable.

"So, I see you got your powers back." He said lamely at an attempt to make conversation. Shadow gave him a look that said 'no duh genius'. "That was lame. I know." He hung his head.

"Yes it was. But not all lame things are bad. Sometimes they can be funny or annoying." He raised his head again. "For instance, what's the best way to catch a fish?" She asked.

"What?" Beast Boy asked.

"Someone throws it to you." It took a moment for it to sink in that Shadow had just told a joke, and not a very good one either. But he began to laugh a little just the same. It had some humor in it. "See? A bad joke, yes, but not an utter flop." The doors opened again and Beast Boy thought she would do the same to the person walking through that she did to him. Instead she only turned her head and then herself to look at the person better. Or rather, persons. All the other Titans filed in and stood in a semicircle around the bed she was in.

"I see you're awake." Robin said.

"No I'm not. I'm in a coma laying over there." Shadow pointed to a corner, and they actually looked. Beast Boy tried to stifle a laugh, but his snickers were heard.

"I see your sense of humor hasn't been lost." Robin said bitterly.

"One, how can you _see_ a sense? And two, I thought there were only six senses; sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, and something else not named." Shadow smirked at the Titans. This time the green teen couldn't hold it in and began laughing. "I'm in a happy mood incase you can't tell."

"And sarcastic." Cyborg said, but not with anger or bitterness. He nudged Robin in the ribs.

"Ouch!" He rubbed his side and glared at Cyborg, who merely motioned for him to get on with it. Robin sighed. "We're glad you're back." He said quietly. It was not like him to admit he was wrong, or that his attitude had changed towards someone he once thought was a foe. That look of caution came into the girl's eyes again and they knew she'd heard him despite the words barely catching sound.

"Please Shadow, do not be afraid. It is true." Starfire said, fearing the girl might bolt again. Shadow looked down, her fingers gripping the bed lightly. They relaxed after a moment and she looked up again.

"Why? All I do is hurt you, curse you, fight with you, and complain. Why would you be glad I'm back here? Not by my will again."

"Because you're kind of like us." Raven said. _'You have no idea.'_ The girl thought.

"And we, want to help you." Robin said. He received a glare and added "We know you don't need it or want it, but we want to." before she could speak. She closed her mouth and sat in deep thought for several minutes. _**'What have you got to lose?' **__'What? Who--?' __**'Never mind that.' **__'But what about--' __**'That can wait. Honestly it's not going anywhere.'**__'…Fine.'_Finally she heaved a sigh and raised her head to look at all of them in turn.

"Okay." Every Titan, including Robin, smiled.

"Joyous!" Starfire proclaimed.

"Can we go somewhere else? I hate rooms that resemble or are hospital rooms." Shadow said.

"Sure. How about the common room? I can even make us a snack while we figure some things out." Cyborg suggested. She nodded and they headed out. Unusual as it seemed, all of them felt as if they'd gained a new friend. Even Shadow felt a little less hostile towards them. She still couldn't bring herself to truly believe they were on her side, however.

Everybody settled in and began to munch on the popcorn that had been made. Shadow complained that it stuck in her teeth, but ate more anyway. Her happy mood had not gone away, and for some reason she could not figure out she was having small flashbacks of her childhood. Happy ones of before--

"So, Shadow." Robin started. They were unsure of what to ask her, there were so many questions that only brought up more questions.

"Hm?"

"Well, uh, how do you open your book for starters?" He finally came up with a question.

"Heh heh. You really want to know?" She stood up to go get it off of the table.

"Yes please. It is most confusing." Starfire said as they watched her come back, with a knife.

"What's the knife for?" Beast Boy asked cautiously.

"Does anybody specific want to open it? Or should I?" Shadow asked, sitting down and putting the book in her lap. They shook their heads, not wanting to be the victim of whatever she was about to do. If it involved sharp and deadly objects it usually wasn't good. She shrugged. "Okay, I'll open it. It opens faster if someone like me does it anyway." She took off a glove and pressed the knife to a finger.

"What are you doing?!" Robin leaped up.

"Opening my book. Isn't that what you wanted me to do?" The knife moved away a little.

"Well yeah, but don't hurt yourself."

"Well that's a little contradictory. And I want to open it anyway." She once again pressed the point of the blade to her pale skin, and this time drew blood. Shadow placed the knife down beside her and brought her punctured finger over the lock and right above the hole. A single drop of dark blood fell into it, and the clasp immediately fell open. "It only opens with blood. My blood opens it faster because of what I am, but anybody can do it. If they're willing to draw their own blood." A small flash of pale blue spread over her finger and the cut was gone, then covered up again by her glove.

"Healing powers, dark magic like Raven's that is freakishly cold, ancient books that only open with blood, I'm not sure what to think of all this!" Beast Boy grabbed his head as it spun with confusion.

"Oh believe me it gets so complicated only a select few can understand any of it." Shadow flipped idly through the pages. "So what did you guys think? Could you understand any of it? Probably not but I still have to ask."

"Raven recited a, spell I believe it was, and then had to leave the room to meditate." Starfire said.

"The pictures were very detailed and beautifully drawn." Raven added. There was one question on their minds that no one seemed able to ask. Finally Cyborg took up the task.

"That was you in those pictures, wasn't it?"

"Yep."

"You keep mentioning that you are something, and that you aren't human." Raven started. Shadow's eyes widened in knowing what she was going to ask. "So what are you? Why does the book open faster for you? Why are you able to go long periods without sleep or food, and still be able to put up a pretty good fight? Why do you have these powers?" It was unlike Raven to ask so many personal questions, but they needed answered before they could help the girl in whatever way they could. Shadow was silent for a long time, and they could see her features drawn into that of worry, and remembrance.

"You really want to know? I mean truly, absolutely, want to know what I am? How I can do all that, why I have these powers, why the book opens faster and the answer to so much more? Because once you know that secret I keep, there's no getting out of what you've drug yourself into." She told them seriously. They all took a moment to reflect what they've been through, and if they _did_ want to know, and then nodded. "I'm sure you're all familiar with Heaven, Hell, God and Satan?" She asked. They nodded once again, even though the girls knew less as they weren't from Earth. "Well, and I know this will sound repetitive and absurd, but I am the daughter of Lucifer. I am half devil."

(A/N: Muahahaha! Not half demon, half devil himself. So there's an answer to many questions, and yet it brings up so much more. Oh, and although there will be many mentions of that religious stuff from now on throughout the story, you can go screw yourself if you get upset over something stupid like that. I myself have no religion, unless you count being a follower of Mother Nature a religion. PLEASE review guys, it makes me happy : ) And right now I need all the happiness I can get.)


	13. Chapter 13

_(A/N: Here's the next chapter to __TDIM!__ To recall in the last chapter we found out that our mystery girl Shadow Hunter is the daughter of Satan! And that I won't tolerate arguing about religion. She's gotten her powers back and so far we've seen two of them in action: Healing powers and dark magic like Raven's only it's very, very cold. Her book only opens with blood as well. I think that's it, so enjoy this new addition to my first story!)_

"_Well, and I know this will sound repetitive and absurd, but I am the daughter of Lucifer. I am half devil."_

Nobody could speak for almost five whole minutes, and as the time dragged on Shadow began to feel uncomfortable. Their expressions were all clones of each other, utter shock and some disbelief. Finally not being able to take it, Shadow cleared her throat. This seemed to bring them out of their trance.

"Wait, what?" Robin said.

"I, uh, I said that I'm the daughter of the fallen angel and am half devil." Shadow repeated while looking at the carpet.

"You can't be serious." Cyborg said. Shadow merely nodded. _'I knew it was a mistake to tell them more than my name. Now they'll think I'm insane or kill me. Of course I'll only--'_

"That does sound repetitive." Robin mused and looked over at Raven, recalling when they found out she was daughter of a demon. He didn't say anything about that in respect.

"Yeah well I can't help that." Shadow crossed her arms.

"So, I mean, how?" Cyborg stammered.

"Well when a devil and a woman love each other very much…" Shadow started, sounding like she was explaining something to a little kid. "Stop, stop! I guess what I mean is why?" Cyborg interrupted.

"Um, because he wanted a child? I don't really know." Lies, but partly true.

"Do you know the story? Like, did she do it willingly? Or was your mom, raped, like Raven's? Sorry Raven." Robin said. Raven nodded, telling them no offense was taken.

"Neither. He took the form of my dad, and she thought it was him. So after he took her on a wonderful date, they, well you know. She didn't find out until after I was born, and my dad couldn't remember what had happened to him. He was probably locked away somewhere or a memory spell was applied while he was out or something. But the signs were always there. I was such a bad child." Shadow chuckled. "Always picking fights with anybody who crossed me, screaming, running away several times. I even broke my mom's favorite antique flower vase that was handmade because she wouldn't let me have another cookie." Again she laughed, but there was sadness behind it. The Titans were listening intently, aware she had started telling them something not originally in the question, but not wanting to stop her. "I always knew there was something wrong with me too. My memory and intelligence was one sign. It scared me, I could remember being inside the womb if I thought hard enough. Still can."

"You can remember that far back?" Beast Boy said, unaware he had just interrupted her. Shadow nodded.

"My senses were heightened too to a point where I thought I had been raised by wolves or something. I could smell our neighbors' cooking and they lived a quarter of a mile away. I knew when an animal was sick or going to die and it had no signs or looked like it was getting better. I was so athletic as well. Always jumping and flipping and running. Nobody wanted to play with me because I could beat them in a race, could jump farther or higher than them, and could do things they couldn't. And my temper. That was the real problem. From day one the smallest things would set me off. A bumpy road, someone talking too loud, bothering me with simple things like dinner was ready, staring at me. There came a day when my parents knew I was not like the others. Not just different like everyone is different from everyone else, but not human. I'd always had a way with animals. They came to me when I was sad or wanted them near, the skittish ones were calmer around me, even wild or wounded animals didn't see me as a threat. I made friends with a mama cougar once."

"Wow. And she let you near her cubs?" Cyborg asked.

"Uh huh. Three beautiful cubs. I even named them. I was young and I hadn't really been as influenced by the outside world as much as an adult had been so a couple of my names were childish, but to me they suited them."

"What were they named?" Robin asked.

"The mother was called Cocoa." She chuckled lightly. "But I named her daughter Mountain Goddess because she was a mountain lion and a female, one of her sons Proud Filth because he always looked so dirty yet happy about it, and the other son Sun Wish because he was a more golden color and loved watching the stars."

"Those are lovely names." Starfire commented.

"Yeah. They were beautiful cats."

"You keep using past tense when talking about them. Is there a reason?" Raven asked. Sometimes people used past tense when talking about the past, but that wasn't always the reason.

"I was playing with them in the forest near their den when I was five. The cubs were only a year old and still about half the size of their mom. We were play-fighting and I got pinned down by Cocoa who was pretending to kill me like I was prey. We'd done that thousands of times and she knew not to bite too hard, and I knew to stop struggling so her teeth wouldn't scratch my skin open. It was all in fun. But a hunter came along and saw what was happening. He wasn't supposed to be there anyway, it was our land. He thought my laughing and squeals meant I was in trouble." Her eyes darkened and they could tell she was getting mad. "That stupid fool! Just because we were playing and cougars have the reputation of being man-eaters he thought she was actually trying to kill me. When Cocoa looked up to see who had come near her den, he shot her." Shadow's eyes were squeezed shut and a single tear found its way out. "And then he shot the cubs when they came rushing to their mother. I didn't have time to stop him." By now unwanted tears were streaming their way down her face, making tracks in the grey makeup. "I was so angry that my powers escaped. I didn't even know I had them at the time. I blacked out. When I came to I'd made a new clearing and the hunter was in pieces, his gun no more."

"Oh Shadow." Starfire stood up and went over to console the poor girl. But when she reached out Shadow yelled at her.

"Don't touch me!!" And then disappeared in her dark energy.

"Where'd she go?" Robin asked Cyborg. He checked the tower for life forms and didn't find any.

"She's outside near the water." Beast Boy said. He was looking out the window. Indeed she was, hunched up and apparently still crying. "Let me go talk to her."

"Beast Boy--" Robin shut up when he received a stern look from his teammate and nodded. The green teen flew out the window as a hawk and landed behind the girl, transforming back to his self. He quietly walked up beside her and sat down, facing the bay. By now her sobs had turned into hitches and she looked over at him.

"What do you want?" She spat.

"I just wanted to say that we've all lost someone we loved. Not in the way you have, but in some form or another. So we can relate on some plane." Beast Boy said, still not looking at her. He did glance over to see her reaction though before turning his gaze back to the water.

"I don't know why I'm crying. I don't allow that and I though I'd gotten over it." Shadow said, straightening up.

"It's okay to cry if you're sad about something. Not stupid things like spilled milk," this received a small chuckle, "but over death it's fine. I cried when my parents died. And I'm fine with that. Why don't you allow yourself to cry? That sounds more like something a guy would say."

"I think of it as a sign of weakness. At least for me. When I cry I can't see very well, I can't breathe normally, and I can't think straight." Shadow explained, her breath hitching again. To try and quell this she took deep breaths, held them for a little bit, and then let them out. It seemed to be working.

"Well, yeah. But it's not always bad to be upset."

"Shut up." Shadow muttered.

"Fine. If you don't want to talk I'll just go." Beast Boy started to get up.

"No, not you. It was…" She heaved a sigh. "I suppose since I'm supposed to be telling you guys about myself I should tell you."

"Tell me what?" He sat back down again. Up above all the Titans were watching to two to keep an eye on them and make sure Shadow didn't suddenly decide she was hungry for green bean on legs.

"I…I'm just a copy of all of you guys as far as basic powers go." She turned her head away.

" No you're not."

"Yes I am. My dark energy powers are exactly like Raven's only I've had more training with them and I'm a devil, not a demon, so they're stronger. Starfire's strength, only without my powers it's not nearly as strong…usually. I'm great with technology like Cyborg. My martial arts skills like Robin. I can change into animals like you. I even take after Terra." Beast Boy frowned at the name, but then his curiosity took hold.

"So, you can move the earth or something?" He asked. Shadow nodded. "You're more than a copy. I mean you've got to have something that's unique to you." He pressed, trying to cheer her up.

"Well yeah, but even that is linked back to you and Raven. I've been molded into who I am in the Titans' image. Remember when I told you I wasn't yelling at you?" He nodded. "I am such a copy even my mind is similar to Raven's."

"What do you mean?"

"My emotions are separate entities. And like with Raven, they have a mind of their own."

"How did you know--?"

"Slade's been watching you guys for a while, and so have I." Beast Boy jumped.

"What do you mean watching us?"

"I mean there are hidden cameras in every room that are on 24/7. He's been keeping track of your team, and so have I. that's why I knew how to take you down, how to avoid your attacks and how much damage they caused. I know a lot about all of you. More than I should."

"You've been spying on us? _He's_ been spying on us? And we haven't known?" Shadow nodded. Beast Boy's tone became serious again. "How long?"

"Since the beginning." She bowed her head despite herself.

"I need to go tell Robin." He stood up.

"Hey. Since I'm not helping him anymore, I'd be glad to point them out for you." He motioned for her to come and Shadow stood up.

"I think they're coming back." Raven said.

"Hm, Beast Boy doesn't look to happy. I wonder why?" Robin said. It hadn't looked like they were fighting, but not every quarrel looks the same. A few minutes the shape shifter walked into the common room, followed by a stoic half devil.

"Guys, Shadow just told me something very important and kind of creepy."

"What is it?" Robin asked seriously.

"There are hidden cameras in every room of the tower."

"What?!" Everybody shouted. Beast Boy nodded.

"They've been there since it was finished, and Slade's had his eye on us since the beginning."

"Where are they?" Robin demanded to Shadow. She looked around the room towards the ceiling before settling her gaze in a corner by the kitchen.

"There's one there." She pointed at the corner, but nobody saw anything.

"I do not see a device." Starfire said.

"Oh it's there. I'll get it." Shadow climbed on top of the counter, made the bottom of her shoes into cleats, and jumped into the corner. It seemed she picked something off the wall before hoping down, but they only saw it when she came back over and opened her hand. What laid there was a very, very small black circle. About the size of a pencil eraser, and only a millimeter thick.

"_That's_ a camera?" Beast Boy asked in shock.

"Don't be deceived Beast Boy, cameras come in all sizes and shapes." Robin explained.

"Can you find the others?" Cyborg asked.

"Only some. I don't know exactly where a few are. Only that there's one in every room." She brought the lens up to her face and stared at it. Then Shadow gave it a big lick, drowning it in saliva.

"Ew." Raven said.

"Why did you do that?" Cyborg asked.

"To piss him off." She answered.

"Hm. We should go find the rest before too long." Robin set out for the rest of the tower, all of the others following to help. On the way out Shadow tossed the drool covered camera in the trash.

"Clever little girl, but not clever enough." A menacing voice spoke from the dark and watched as one-by-one the cameras were destroyed, most of them having something done to them by Shadow first. "I still know where you are, and you _will_ be mine again." One dark eye continued to stare at the multiple screens as they began to go black.

It had taken nearly an hour to find the cameras Shadow didn't know the whereabouts of, on top of a previous hour to get the others. Eventually all of them had been found and disposed of, Beast Boy helping out a lot by turning into a spider and crawling on the walls. Raven and Starfire had found a few by floating up to the ceilings, but Robin and Cyborg had to scan from the ground. By the time every camera had been collected and destroyed, it was early morning and everybody was ready for bed. After a lot of debate and stubbornness, they decided Shadow would be allowed to sleep in Beast Boy's room again. What shocked them, and possibly persuaded Robin to give in, was that she said she liked sleeping in there because of the smells.

As everybody snuggled into their warm covers with their minds more at ease, they wished for good dreams to visit them while they slept. But only one stayed awake after all others had said their good-nights. Only one misunderstood and cursed girl stared into the darkness of the room she slept in, listening to the storm moving in. _'They can't help me. I already know this. So why do I keep telling them about my life? My secrets, my terrors, my curse? Of course what I have told them is nothing to what I'm still hiding within the dark recesses of my blackened heart, but what could they possibly do? They were able to bring down Raven's father, but he was only a demon, a creation and minion of my father. Father, more like sperm donor.' __**'He's still responsible for who you are, for the fact that you're here, and for what you'll do in only a few years' time.'**_ The voice was sinister and had a smile behind it. _'Not completely, Draklata, and you know it. Both you and Slade have a huge hand in this…er…claw in your case.' __**'Yes, but he started it and--' **__'You sound like a little kid complaining to their mom.'_ _**'Don't interrupt me. I know you haven't forgotten my influence. I'm not some emotion you can beat down whenever it rears its ugly head.' **__'Ugly, yes.' _A surge of anger. _**'Don't push it. Especially if you want to beat back the poison. You can't do it alone after all.'**_ The voice disappeared and Shadow finally fell into a fitful sleep.

(A/N: I little short, but I actually thought about ending it earlier. Of course I like longer chapters, but my muse ran out for the moment. Let's see if the smarties can connect the conversation at the end to something referenced earlier in the story ;) Shouldn't be hard. My fans have dwindled to one, but one is better than none. So a personal thanks to RandomChi for staying with me! Here's a cyber cake! Hm, my python seems to be sleeping now, but he better not try to escape again. He actually got most of his body out of the cage before I caught him. Man if I had gone to bed a few minutes before like I was planning we might have had another missing snake. Good thing there are a lot of big rocks lying around. He tried again, but now the lid's too heavy. Muahaha!


	14. Chapter 14

_(A/N: Here's chapter 14! Wow, this is getting long. I might have to make a sequel to write down the entire plot. And then I still have yet to start __When it Comes to War__. slams head There's even more I have to do which I won't mention. _

_Oh to be a cat is my favorite dream. _

_To lie around all day and myself I will clean. _

_An occasional yawn or the bat of an eye. _

_Always so curious, never too shy. _

_Oh to be a cat is my favorite dream. _

_With my fur cleaned to a beautiful sheen, _

_To be a cat is my favorite dream._

_I made that up on the spot. What? Fine! Rachel gave me the idea for why Shadow jumps into the cage. Woo hoo for her.)_

_Another day, another chance at life. It had been another week since Shadow had once again been brought to the Tower. When the Titans woke one-by-one and made their way into the common room for breakfast, they once again found that Shadow was already up and had been since five in the morning. It was coming as less of a surprise than originally. What now shocked them was if she slept in. They had discovered she was a music fan, and usually listened to depressing forms of the art. This gave them another way to communicate with her, and it seemed to open her up a little when discussing why she liked this song or that artist. Other than dealing with little quarrels between each other about little things like breakfast, the week had been pretty uneventful and the tower's residents were growing bored._

"_Movie?" Beast Boy asked wearily, clearly his energy sapped by boredom._

"_Nah." Was the reply with the same energy._

"_The mall of shopping?" Starfire asked, the same tone apparent in her voice._

"_Uh-uh."_

"_The museum?" Robin suggested._

"_No."_

"_Docks?" Cyborg contributed._

"_Nope."_

"_Stay here?" Raven queried._

"_No!" They groaned. There was a moment of silence as everyone tried to decide what they should do._

"_I honestly don't care as long as it's outside of this tower." Shadow complained, her head laid back over the couch. She was starting to think about leaving again to continue to her original destination._

"_The zoo?" Beast Boy once more suggested a place. Shadow's head raised in curiosity and interest._

"_Sure." Robin said._

"_I would most like to see the fuzzy creatures." Starfire bubbled._

"_I'm up for anything to do with animals as long as it isn't cruel." Shadow replied._

"_I'm up for it." Cyborg shrugged. They all turned to Raven._

"_Fine." There was a low cheer as they finally found something to do and began to get ready._

_An hour later they had arrived at the large zoo and were making their way in after buying admission._

"_Where should we go first?" Robin asked, looking at a map of the zoo. Cyborg, Starfire, Raven, Beast Boy and Shadow replied almost at once._

"_Bears!"_

"_Koalas!"_

"_Komodo dragons."_

"_Monkeys!"_

"_I hear they have a Jaguarundi."_

"_Oh, goody." Robin dragged a gloved hand down his face._

"_Why don't we split up and meet back somewhere when we're done?" Cyborg suggested._

"_Great idea! We can meet at the restaurants at 3:00. But, someone would have to go with Shadow."_

"_What? You don't think I can take care of myself?" She crossed her arms over her chest._

"_No, it's just…" Robin started. He didn't want to be mean and set her off, especially in a public place._

"_Seeing as how you reacted to Robin when he was just one human, we're not too sure you're safe to be around a lot unguarded." Cyborg finished._

"_Ah. Okay. Good reasoning and correct conclusion." She began to walk off in the direction a sign labeled "Exotic". "Whoever's coming better hurry up because I'm not waiting." She called over her shoulder. Beast Boy started to go after her but Robin pulled him back by his shoulder and scowled before going after her himself. The shifter's face fell into that of disappointment and sadness._

"_He still doesn't trust me does he? Man, I feel like he's taken after Shadow in that department." Beast Boy huffed._

"_They've both got issues. Hell, we all do. Just don't give him any reason for him to keep thinking that and you'll be fine in no time." Cyborg advised._

"_At least you guys don't have to worry about me like with Robin and Starfire." He grumbled, but they heard it. Starfire giggled and blushed, then pretended not to know what he was talking about. "Well, I'll be off." He turned around and headed in the direction of the primates. Starfire, Cyborg, and Raven then went their own ways as well._

_Robin quickly caught up to the dark mistress and she made her way down the paths towards her destination. "So, what is a Jagurndi anyway?" He made an attempt as conversation, in hopes it would distract her enough from the hundreds of people milling around._

"_Jaguarundi_." Shadow corrected. "It's a small cat. Very rare to see in the wild. They like to hang upside down from one foot." She explained.

"Really?" He had never heard of something like that. Shadow nodded. Somebody rudely bumped the girl hard enough to spin her around, and she used this momentum to try and lunge at the person. Before her claws could make contact, though, she was roughly jerked back by a gloved arm. She settled for a glare at whatever crossed her gaze and low growls to herself. "Calm down." He said firmly. She snorted and seemed to be calming down from her anger high. They found the exhibit named 'Jaguarundi'.

Beast Boy had snuck into the spider monkey cage when nobody was looking, and now a small, green monkey was playing with the others. He was enjoying running around with brown spider monkeys the most, and it was an even better treat because they were endangered. His attention was drawn to the front of the cage as two people came up to watch.

"Mama? Why is that one green?" A small child asked as he pointed at Beast Boy.

"I don't know honey, let's go." The woman pulled her child away from the monkeys. Beast Boy's face fell and he decided to move on. He crawled out of the bars in the form of a cockroach.

Raven was watching the Komodo dragons as they watched her. They were very interesting creatures, if you could get past the bacteria-filled drool and hungry eyes, and also endangered. Because the exhibit was in a pit below the walkway, there was only a low fence to keep people away. They usually didn't need more because the dragons intimidated people like a roaring lion would. And an information sign said their dripping saliva was poisonous. But somebody wanting a closer look knocked into the Titan and sent her falling over the edge. She caught herself before hitting the ground, and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Sorry!" The person said from the crowd. Raven nodded her acceptance of the apology. "Look out!" Somebody pointed in Raven's direction, who had now settled on the ground. She turned her head back in time to see a large adult male quickly making his way towards the girl, and his intentions were clear. Apparently half of a deer wasn't enough to fill him up, and he was still hungry. She gasped and quickly floated back up, just as his powerful jaws were about to clamp down. Again Raven blessed her luck and made a mental note to tell the zookeepers about the low fence, and to stay farther away from the exhibits next time. And maybe they should feed the dragons more, lest someone else becomes their lunch.

Starfire was having the time of her life watching the cuddly koalas slowly munch their eucalyptus leaves. She kept asking questions to the people watching, and it was quickly getting on their nerves. "Please, why are they called 'bears' if they are not, in fact, related to the bear?" She asked one person. He groaned.

"It was a misunderstanding when naming it because they look like Teddy bears." He informed her. "It explains that on the plaque." He pointed to the information plaque about the animal. It also said they were endangered.

"I am afraid I have not yet learned to read the Earth languages." She muttered, leaning in close to the words. "I shall ask Robin to teach me." Her eyes lit up with glee when one that was close yawned and looked at her lazily.

Cyborg was watching one of the zoo's Kodiak grizzly bears. This one was very vocal and repeatedly called out or grunted. Occasionally Cyborg would grunt back to see the reaction. Sometimes the bear looked over, but mot of the time is ignored him and milled around. This animal was not endangered, unlike many of the others, and it made the man happy to know that one of his favorite animals was not in big trouble of disappearing. "Grr." He growled at it, and the large female stood up to get a better look at him. She sniffed and then went back to all fours, going into a rock cave for a nap. "Aww, come back." Nothing. "Fine." He checked the time and saw it was close to three, and decided to go to the meeting place.

Robin had been watching the shy creature play around in the trees for a while. He glanced over at his companion. Wait, did he say "companion"? Yes, the Titans' leader had begun to think of the mistress of the night as a companion. An annoying one, and somebody that had to be watched all the time lest something bad happen, but a companion at that. His brow furrowed as he saw the worried look upon her pale face.

"What's wrong?" He asked. She was staring intently at something on the ground in the exhibit. She didn't reply, but leaned closer to the fence. "Shadow?" Before he knew she had jumped the fence and was making her way quickly, but cautiously, towards a spotted figure on the ground. "Shadow! Get back here!" He whispered loudly, not wanting to draw attention to the fact that she had broken one of the zoo's rules, but he didn't want to just sit there either. "Arr!" Robin jumped the fence as well and quickly went over to the deserter, just as she quickly knelt down in front of a large limb that had fallen. "Shadow, what are you--?" A baby Jaguarundi was trapped under the limb and crying out. Its calls for help were so small and weak that he could only hear them once he got close. Then he saw the mama pacing back and forth rapidly, growling at the two but also realizing what they were doing.

Shadow grabbed one end of the branch and Robin grabbed the other. It was lifted with ease between the two and set aside. The girl rushed back to the kitten and gently ran her fingers along it, feeling for anything that was broken. They stopped at the pelvis and a look of sadness and worry overcame her features.

"Is it okay?" Robin asked with concern. She shook her head and then picked it up as gently as she could, still earning a whimper from the baby and a snarl from the mother, who was trying to see what was wrong with her child.

"I'm going to take it away to get help." She said kindly. Robin nodded, but then saw she had spoken to the Jaguarundi. Shadow stood up and the mom pawed at her once, wanting to be with her kitten, but then let her go.

"Can't you just use your healing powers on it?" Robin asked walking with her back towards the fence. She shook her head again.

"My healing powers only work on me. I've never cared about a person enough to let them affect someone else, and I was deprived of animal contact so they were never able to affect an animal. Which is why I need to get her to the zoo vet a soon as possible." She cradled the kitten closer to her chest and used her dark energy to float over the fence.

"Which way?" Robin asked, jumping back over.

"Uh…"

"Hey! You! Stop right there!" A man came rushing over to the pair. "What are you doing with that baby Jaguarundi?! Only staff are allowed in the exhibits or to handle the animals." His nametag stated that he was the head zookeeper.

"Where is the zoo vet?" It was more of a demand than a question.

"If it's hurt or sick it's our responsibility to take care of it, not yours. Hand it over." He reached out his hands to take the kitten from Shadow, but she back away.

"Show me _now_. I'm not going to risk further injury by letting her get passed back and forth, and to somebody who doesn't know how to properly hold her." The man looked furious.

"Look, young lady, I don't have time--" Robin stepped up.

"As leader of the Teen Titans and protectors of this city I demand you let her bring this injured animal to your vet as soon as possible."

"Fine. This way." He quickly led them away, all the while Shadow giving strange looks to the colorful teen.

"I wonder what's taking them so long." Cyborg said. It was now half an hour past three and Robin and Shadow had yet to show up.

"Maybe she killed him and took off." Beast Boy said, stirring a soda he had bought the restaurant. He received a glare from the metal teen. "What?! It's possible!" He defended himself. Cyborg just shook his head and sighed. "What do you think happened Raven?"

"Who knows? Maybe they got in another fight. They're like cats and dogs." She flipped the page of the book she had brought along. Just then said people came around a corner and sat down at an outside table.

"Hey, where have you guys been? It's 3:30." Cyborg said as they sat down. "And what's around your neck, Rob?"

"Shadow helped a baby Jagurndi and both of us got medals for helping out." He said proudly.

"_Jaguarundi_." Shadow corrected once again.

"Really? Well alright! Give me five." Cyborg held up his hand to Shadow, but she just looked at it and cocked her head slightly. "Er, you're supposed to slap it." He sweat dropped. One of her eyebrows rose, but then she raised her own hand and smacked it against Cyborg's.

"So where's your medal Shadow?" Beast Boy asked, having seen the gold and red apparatus dangling from his leader's neck, but nothing new on Shadow's.

"I put it away." She replied.

"Can we go home now?" Raven complained.

"Why? Just because you were almost eaten?" Beast Boy nudged her.

"No, I just want to go home. This place is great, but it smells."

"Wait, wait, wait! What happened?" Robin asked.

"Someone pushed Miss Sunshine over here into the Komodo dragons' cage and one thought she'd be a tasty treat." Robin's mask narrowed at Raven for not telling him sooner. But his anger was quickly disrupted by a very small sound. He looked to his right and saw that Shadow was once again trying not to laugh.

"It's not funny." He scolded.

"Yes it is." The strain was clear in her voice, but eventually she quelled the fit. Suddenly there was a high pitched scream from nearby. Everybody looked to see what it was, and saw a group of teenage girls huddled together and staring at the group with wide and disbelieving eyes. They began to whisper amongst themselves and point.

"Uh, what's going on?" Beast Boy asked.

"I'm not sure." Robin replied.

"I bet it's just another bunch of fan girls hoping for an autograph." Raven said.

"Well let's not disappoint them." Beast Boy stood up and began to make his way over to the crowd. Suddenly, one of the younger girls looked at his with her eyes narrowed and a smile on her face.

"Mine." She growled, before leaping onto the poor boy. This triggered the rest of them to attack the other Titans, most piling on Robin and Beast Boy.

"Whoa." Shadow peeled herself out of the group that had gone after Starfire, Cyborg, and Raven and stepped back quickly, trying not to trip on screaming fans.

"Help!" Robin cried as he was suddenly lifted off the ground by a tall, heavyset blond with shoulder length hair and grayish blue eyes.

"He's mine!" She cried and began to run away with him. A small group of girls, and guys, blocked her path.

"No he's not, Christina!"

"Oh yeah?" And then, despite her weight, she jumped high in the air and kicked them all down, without dropping her prize. "Muahaha!" Robin and Christina disappeared from sight.

Beast Boy was being fought over by less, but they were still enough to keep him down. Yet another blond had a hold of this one and was fighting off all the others, including one that he found out was her sister. The blond had much shorter hair in a cut that looked like it was supposed to be like Raven's, and she had brown eyes. She was also over weight, but not badly. The brunette had long brown hair and brown eyes, but they were not kind eyes. The slyness and possible evil in them was evident as she fought the others too for a grip on Beast Boy. She was also overweight, but again, not badly. "Rachel, I claimed him long ago!" She cried to the blond next to her.

"Too bad! You get everything, _I_ want him!" The one called Rachel yelled back, and found some green hair to wrap her fingers around.

"Ladies, please!" Beast Boy cried in vain, his hope of coming out of this with dignity diminishing. "Ouch!" His hair was tugged again. With a great amount of strength the sisters shoved the other girls away and picked up their prize, running in the direction Christina had gone with Robin.

"I believe our friends may be in danger." Starfire said, backing up from a group of horny looking guys.

"They're not the only ones." Raven replied, backing into the alien to try and escape a bunch of Gothic and Emo guys. Cyborg then joined them as he was cornered by girls of many kinds.

"This isn't going to end well, is it?" He muttered.

"No."

"I do not think so." All of them were tackled and eventually dragged someplace for whatever their captors had in mind.

"So, who are you? Are you the new Titan?" A girl asked Shadow, who was sitting in a nearby tree and enjoying the show.

"Nope. Actually I'm their captive," She leaned down to the person, "but don't tell anybody or I'll be in trouble and they'll beat me again." She winked, indicating that it was a joke, but the girl didn't seem to catch on and her jaw dropped with her eyes bugged out. The young woman thought about telling the fan she was joking, seeing as she clearly didn't have enough brain cells to figure it out on her own, but then thought it would be more fun to see what stories came about this.

It was early in the morning and Shadow was making herself breakfast when the doors to the common room opened to find the five Titans enter. They looked worn out and their clothes were ripped in several pieces, or barely there at all. Cyborg's armor was dented and very scuffed up, Robin was nearly naked, and Beast Boy's suit looked like it did when the Beast incident had occurred. The girls were in better shape, but they still looked bad. Shadow looked them over before going back to making her breakfast.

"So how'd it go?" She asked as if they had just gone out for groceries or something. Her response was a group groan as they all collapsed on the floor. She merely smiled and sat down to eat. "Good. Hope you had fun." She hadn't even gotten a bite in her mouth when the phone rang. "I wonder who that could be. I guess I'll answer it." The smile stayed as she got up and answered the phone. "Yes? Oh hi, Christina. You're welcome. Tell Rachel and Harlie they're welcome too. Goodbye." She hung up the phone and went back to her food, taking one last look at the sleeping Titans before going about her business, the small, sly smile never leaving her face as she thought back to what she'd done.

(A/N: He he. Well there's chapter 14 for you! And just incase you're wondering, Christina is both my sister's and my friend, and while she does look like I described, she can't do flashy moves. But she does pack a punch and can sit on you lol. I am Harlie, the brunette, and my sister is Rachel, the blond. I said I would write a scene with them in it, not really meaning it, but they wanted to be in my story for something like that so I did : ) Besides, Rachel's putting me and Christina in one of her stories, so it's only fair. And fun Enjoy!)


	15. Chapter 15

_(A/N: So once again, another installment of __The Demon Inside Me__! Heh, Shadow set them up so she could get some time away from them. This story will be coming to a close soon, but I will be putting up a sequel. Unless somebody out there wants like, 100 long chapters to read 0.o Not me! So, oh, take a look at all the stories by my sister Raven'sWinterRain. They're pretty good actually. I sat on an egg and it hatched into a sea cookie!)_

_Thoroughly _

_It was twilight before the first of the Titans began to stir. Raven was the first up, and quickly healed any cuts or bruises on her friends. Shadow was nowhere to be seen, so the dark bird set off to find her. "She has something to do with this, I'm sure of it."_

_Starfire woke up next, and spent several minutes trying to wake her fallen friends. Eventually Cyborg came around, but the other two males were still out. "Oh, I fear they may be worse off than we were. Will they awaken from their slumber?" She asked the metal man, tears in her eyes._

"_Yes Star." He laughed. "But probably not for a while. They look like they had a pretty rough night." Again he laughed and then left them to make something to eat. They didn't seem injured, so he wouldn't put them in the med bay. They would wake up soon so he didn't move them. Besides, his stomach was growling at him to feed it. Starfire paced back and forth, and then noticed Raven was missing._

"_I shall go find her." The alien flew off in search of her missing friend._

_Raven had searched everywhere but the roof, so she was now heading up there by way of dark energy. As she phased onto the roof, she saw a flash of orange and red from around the other side. She walked around the door and saw who she was looking for. But she was doing something parents usually told children they should never do; she was playing with fire. But it wasn't like a fire you make on the ground, no, it was coming from her hands. Large streams flew up, around, down, twisted and turned, all at her will. Then they suddenly died._

"_Arg! Why can't I get it?!" She took a deep breath and raised her hands again to begin anew. This is when Raven chose to interrupt her._

"_Shadow?" The girl seemed to jump a little, having not heard or sensed she was there._

"_Yes?" Shadow turned to face Raven._

"_Did you have something to do with last night?" She crossed her arms._

"_Maybe." Her eyes danced with mischief._

"_Why?"_

"_Because I can. And I wanted some time alone without being hunted down." She crossed her arms as well._

"_Don't do it again." Every word was emphasized and Raven turned to go back into the tower. Shadow shrugged and raised her arms again, the fire dancing from her fingertips and a look at concentration plastered to her face. When Raven came back into the common room, everybody was up and sitting around the table. They had changed back into their normal uniforms._

"_Where were you?" Beast Boy asked when he saw her come in._

"_Looking for Shadow." She went to make some tea to calm her mind._

"_Where is she? Did she have something to do with this?" He stood up._

"_On the roof playing with fire. And yes, she does." Raven answered._

"_She's what?" Cyborg asked, putting his sandwich down._

"_She's on the roof playing with fire." Raven repeated, pouring her drink and sitting down._

"_So now she's trying to burn the tower down. Glee." Robin sipped on his coffee. _

"_She is much trouble, no?" Starfire asked, looking at Robin._

"_Yes." He spat. "She's worse than a puppy with a bad habit of chewing."_

"_Please, what events occurred during the night for each of you?" Starfire asked. The guys mumbled something inaudible._

"_Why? What happened to you?" Raven asked._

"_Oh, well…" Starfire blushed and her pointer finger pushed together. "You recall how I was dragged away?" They nodded. "Many of the males who had captured me threw me into a dark hallway behind the home of animals."_

"_An alley?" Robin asked, growing angry. _

"_Yes, and they attempted to, I'm not really sure. But they tore my garments and…touched me."_

"_They what?" Robin growled._

"_No worries, I was successful in fighting them off and then flew home." She smiled, but it wasn't enough for her boyfriend. He stood up, to go where nobody was sure, but Starfire placed a hand on his shoulder and pulled him down again. "I am unharmed Robin. It is the okay." He glared for a moment longer before giving in. It would never be okay to him, but he would pretend for now. Starfire smiled at him, and then turned to Cyborg. "Friend Cyborg?"_

"_Oh, well they weren't able to do much other than bang me up a little." His smile was a mix of happiness and sadness. They nodded._

"_Friend Beast Boy? How was your night?"_

"_I think I got off lucky."_

"_Really? How?" Robin asked._

"_Well, it was two sisters that dragged me off. But they were so preoccupied with trying to keep the other away that I was able to escape." He grinned._

"_But you were so scuffed up." Raven commented._

"_Well they had to get the other away for __some_ amount of time. They were very creative, and I'm scared of the blond."

"Why? What'd she do?" Cyborg asked, a hint of humor underneath his words.

"She's has these weird objects in her room. And when her sister insulted her…she said something that freaked me out a little."

"What? Did she ask you to hang by your toes until you pass out?" Raven asked, jokingly. Of course her facial appearance hadn't changed.

"I quote 'Sticks and stones may break my bones, but whips and chains excite me.'" They stared.

"Note to self, stay away from her." Cyborg said. It wasn't everyday you came across somebody like that. "Raven?"

"Pretty much the same as Starfire. I fought them off and came home." She shrugged and got up to refill her mug.

"And lastly, Robin." Beast Boy said, looking at his leader, who seemed to have gained color in his face.

"Well, I, um…" He trailed off, pulling at his collar and looking down.

"Nuh-uh. We told our stories, you tell yours." Cyborg pressed.

"But I--" Robin tried to protest, but the stern looks he received cut it off. It was only fair, even if he really didn't want to talk about it. He took a deep breath and let it out, trying to calm himself. "That girl dragged me off and--" The rest was a low mumble.

"Sorry, what? Couldn't hear you." Cyborg said.

"It could not have been that bad Friend Robin. The rest of us escaped with little harm, have you not as well?" Starfire asked innocently. Robin's face heated up again, and he tried to become as small as possible in his seat. Again his reply was a mumble, but Beast Boy thought he picked up a word.

"Rape? What?" He asked for clarification.

"Yeah." Robin said. Their eyes widened, well, all but Starfire's, who was confused.

"Wait, wait, wait. Did you just say you got raped?" Cyborg said, staring. Robin nodded, looking anywhere but at them.

"So, our fearless leader of the Teen Titans, former sidekick to _the_ Batman, master of martial arts, was forced to get laid?" The disbelief and chuckle was evident in Beast Boy's voice.

"It's not funny!" Robin shouted.

"Actually, it kind of is." Cyborg replied.

"Please, friends, I am confused. What is this, rape, you talk about? And why does it make Robin upset, yet you find it humorous?" Starfire asked, looking at them all.

"I'll tell you later, Starfire. Seeing as Robin doesn't look like he could handle much else on that subject." Raven gave him a sympathetic glance, and he caught it. She wasn't one to make fun of other people, especially over subjects like this. But Cyborg and Beast Boy on the other hand…

"If you say _anything_ to _anyone_, I'll make sure both your brains are scrambled so bad you'll both think you're chickens." Robin threatened them, and they seemed to get the point. Just then the main offender walked in, taking a seat by the window again.

"Shadow." Raven said in monotone.

"Yes?" The dark girl asked, turning her head to make eye contact. Again they noticed the red rim around the emeralds, and questioned it. That kind of discoloration didn't happen in people, or animals. And Raven had explained that being the daughter of the Devil wouldn't have done it either. There were still so many secrets hidden behind them, but these were secrets they couldn't allow to be kept away for long. They didn't know how they knew, but they did. She was hiding something very important, and they needed to find out what it was. "Well?" Raven realized they had all been looking at her.

"Why did you do it?" Robin asked, his mask narrowed.

"I already told Raven and I don't like repeating myself." She replied. "And it was amusing." Shadow added, looking at their looks of disgust and hatred with an air of indifference. They were silent again, trying to think of what they could say to her. That it was wrong? She didn't care. That something about it was probably against the law? Again she wouldn't care. Nothing they could say would affect her, and this is what irked them all.

"We'll talk about this later." Robin promised, and then he saw something coming towards the window behind Shadow. "What is that?" He asked, seeing it grow bigger as it came closer. Now it appeared to be a bird, but not one he recognized. Shadow's head turned to the window and then she stood up. To everybody's surprise, it kept getting bigger and then it was too close to stop before hitting the window. The window beside her was open for air, and just as it looked like the bird's huge wingspan was going to prevent it from getting through unharmed, it folded its wings, soared through the window, opened its wings again, and landed on the back of the couch with a grace that seemed unnatural. It perched there, wings folded back against it, and they were able to take upon all the details about it.

It was certainly larger than any bird they'd seen around there; slightly larger than even the California condor. Its eyes had the look of a hunter, and scanned them all. The bird's beak was sharply hooked on the end, much like an eagle's. It had a crown of feathers on the top of its head that were a deep shade of blue. Its feathers were brightly colored in deep reds and oranges with hints of yellow. Its tail was long, and touched the couch seat, even though it stood upright. In its talons, clearly meant for tearing flesh, was a blue rose, thorns still intact. All-in-all, it looked like a mix between a hawk, eagle, and Phoenix.

"Whoa, what _is_ that?" Beast Boy asked in awe, breaking the silence.

"A Mataka. But what is it doing here?" Shadow said, moving around to face it. The bird turned to look her dead in the eye, obviously not afraid of her. That both intrigued the Titans and made them nervous. Normally a wild animal that wasn't afraid of people could be dangerous. Shadow began talking to it in her tongue and it held up the clawed foot with the rose in it, offering it to her. They saw her eyes widen to an impossible size, and she didn't move for a second. "This can't be true." She whispered, looking back at the bird's face. It nodded, and held the talons up farther. She took the flower as if it would shatter at the lightest touch, and just stared at it.

"Is something wrong?" Robin asked. First the strange bird coming and then Shadow seeming to be afraid of what it brought was making him uneasy. She didn't speak, just continued to stare, and just as he was about to brave the bird and go over to her, her eyes narrowed and she smiled. The grin was not kind, and held no humor in it whatsoever. It showed off her two-centimeter long fangs, the predatory whiteness showing up brightly against her pale skin. She looked back at the bird, and spoke something in her language that they assumed meant "Thank you." It nodded and then flew out the same way it came in, disappearing into the twilight.

"What just happened? I don't think it's very good since you're grinning like that." Beast Boy said, the smallest of quivers finding its way to his voice. Shadow chuckled; a cruel chuckle that means a bad guy has just had something go horribly right for them. She raised her head and her posture straightened. She held the rose out in front of her, but not like it was made of glass anymore. Then turned it and brought the flower to her nose and sniffed it.

"You have no clue what just happened, do you?" Shadow asked, looking at them with her narrowed eyes, that grin still on her face, but her teeth were covered now.

"No, and we'd like to know." Robin said, not liking the way she was grinning or the way her laugh had sounded.

"You won't believe me." Her voice had lost the threat in it, but they still didn't like the way she looked.

"Try us." Raven challenged. There was a pause, until the girl turned to them fully.

"Have you ever heard of something called The Kingdom?" She asked, looking at the flower as she twirled it gently between her gloved fingers.

"No," Robin started, drawing it out. "Should we have?"

"Yes, but I'm the only person who does know about it." She said, moving slowly over to sit down.

"What's this all about?" Raven asked.

"Beast Boy?"

"Yes?" He replied, jumping a little. All this had put them on edge, and he jumped a little when the creepy girl in front of him spoke directly to him.

"Do you remember how you tried to find out what language I spoke?" He nodded. "It is called the Language of The Kingdom."

"What exactly _is_ this kingdom?" Cyborg asked. They had all sat down by now, but the only one who seemed at ease was Shadow, and she seemed deliriously happy. And not in a good way. She knew something they didn't, and although she was telling about it rather than keep it hidden, they knew it couldn't be good for them.

"Think of animal classification. Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species." Beast Boy had said the last few with her. Something was coming to his mind, but it was too jumbled and faded for him to grasp it.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Robin asked, but he was taking in everything she said and saving it for later.

"Everything. And, I already told you what it was. Just now."

"I don't understand. All you did was name off the levels of classification for all living things. Kingdom…" Cyborg stopped and looked at her, suddenly realizing something. She smiled, knowing he'd gotten something.

"Do you mean to tell us…?s" Raven began.

"That this Kingdom includes all the others." It wasn't a question, and Beast Boy's eyes widened at her.

"Yes. It includes every single animal on the face of the Earth. Even the plants are in it. The Language of The Kingdom is the only language that allows the user to speak to any animal, no matter species. That's why you can understand it Beast Boy. Your animal DNA recognizes it, even if you don't."

Beast Boy sat back, a hand to his head. This was too much to take in. There was a kingdom right under their noses, and a language that went with it. "How long has it been here?" He asked, but already knew the answer.

"Since the first cell."

"You said it included every animal. Well, humans are technically animals too, so does it include us?" Robin asked.

"No." Shadow said, the grin was gone, replaced by a scowl. "You've lost your place in that society by breaking every law of nature. You kill for more than food, you've set up your own laws that contradict and reject Natsala's, you destroy her creations without care or regret, and you flat out _ignore_ the warning signs. You enslave her creatures, burn down their homes, tear up their ground. And for _what_? Your own greed. It gets you nowhere, and in turn is killing you all. Your kind hasn't been welcome in the most inclusive group of all for centuries." Shadow sneered at Robin, the hate for mankind flooding off of her. He made himself look unaffected, but inside he was hurting. And she knew it.

"So, uh, back to the bird and the rose." Beast Boy said, trying to get back on the previous subject. Shadow's grin was back and she twirled the flower again, not looking at Robin.

"What did you say it was called?" Starfire said. She had been quiet for now, listening to what was happening. She squeezed Robin's hand in reassurance, and he gave her a small smile none of the other picked up on.

"A Mataka."

"I've never heard of it." The shifter replied, his hand on his chin.

"Of course not. We are now the only people on this planet to know they even exist. Don't feel proud, we won't be for long." She added when most of their eyes lit up at hearing that.

"Okay, so we know what the bird is called, but why did it come here and give you that?" Raven asked. She had a hunch, even though it didn't make complete sense. A kingdom was governed in a Monarchy, right? So that meant it needed someone to rule it.

"It may seem like just a blue rose to you, but to me it means something finally went right in my life, and big time. This is probably the part you won't believe." She paused, looking at them all. "I am now the Queen of The Kingdom. I rule the world, in a sense." There was a silence so thick it seemed you could grab hold of it and choke it. And then it was shattered by one meek voice, full of shock, horror, and realization.

"Are you serious?" Beast Boy asked. Shadow nodded.

"What do you do now?" Cyborg asked. He was feeling all of it too, but was trying to keep himself together.

"I have to go find the old ruler and make it official." Shadow said, and her face was solemn.

"And where would that be? Incase you haven't noticed, there are over six billion people on this planet." Robin informed. Again Shadow glared at him.

"Were you not listening? Your kind has been rejected for centuries, why would a _human_ be in charge of the very thing they're trying to wipe out? No, I'm looking for an animal."

"There's even more of them! How are we supposed to know who currently rules?" Beast Boy said. Shadow stood up and began heading for the roof.

"We listen."

"I don't hear anything." Raven commented. They had been standing up there in the cold and dark for an hour, and the only sounds to be heard were from themselves, and the ocean.

"It won't be long now. They must have gotten the message by now." Then they heard something faint, and almost thought it was the wind. But then it came again, and Shadow visibly perked up, going towards the sound. They followed her, and could now hear it more clearly. The wind could make a sound like this sometimes, but it could never sound exactly like the real thing. The cry of a wolf echoed through the night again, and Shadow cupped her hands around her mouth to howl back. If they hadn't seen her do it, the Titans could have sworn the large canine was standing right next to them. Even Beast Boy was impressed, but then he guessed it was because she could change into one. It continued back and forth for several minutes, until Shadow put her hands back and the night was silent again.

"So…did you--?" Cyborg hinted.

"No, simply arranged a meeting time. And it's even better." She said.

"Why is that?" Starfire asked.

"Because the ruler is one of my old friends. And I'm going to meet him in the morning."

(A/N: Alrighty, 1/3 of the major parts of this story is coming into focus. How's about that? There's a kingdom of animals and plants and Shadow is about to become the Queen of it. Oh but I'm not done with her yet, or the Titans. They've got a few more major shocks coming their way, and their lives will depend on how close they get to Shadow ;) Hm, it seems that my only loyal reviewer has gone missing :( I think I'm going to shift from the current focus soon and get one huge scene out of the way, and then end this and work on the sequel, where it all comes down to one event. I shall speak no more.)

**RWR: ****K****ids ****P****laying ****C****hicken ****O****n ****F****reeways ****G****et ****S****quished. That's always fun to say. Anyway…… yup. Got nothing else to say. Uh, bye, I guess. You might be seeing me later on. **

…

…

…

**I LOST THE GAME!! ……Dammit. Doomahickey. Haha. **

I lost The Game . Now, go put a banana in your ear!!


	16. Chapter 16

(A/N: I seem to have lost all reviewers . But, that will not stop me from continuing! Hm, since there is going to be a large time jump in part of my story, I think I'll end it before the first major battle, because it happens after the jump. But I still need a couple more chapters before I can do that)

Everybody was on edge when the sun rose. After finding out that Shadow was going to meet the current ruler of the Kingdom, containing every animal on the planet, to become the new ruler, nobody knew what to think. Robin was very nervous about her being in charge of _anything_, let alone the world's animals. Starfire was conflicted. On one hand, she was happy for Shadow, but not quite sure it was safe for the rest. Cyborg was on the same page, mainly feeling the latter. Raven was sort of sitting back and watching, but watching Shadow's every move, every expression, trying to feel what she was feeling incase something were to turn for the worse. Beast Boy was almost overjoyed. I mean, how often does anybody, let alone someone you know (and like), get to be the ruler of the largest group on the planet? He was also slightly nervous, but more happy than anything. It weirded him out a little though, since she had explained this also made her in charge of him in a way.

"No! You can't come with me!"

"Why? Are we not worthy to be in the presence of the current ruler?" Robin asked sarcastically.

"No. Besides, he didn't ask you to come with me."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning, that your presence will be unwelcome and considered an insult to think you can just waltz right in and listen to our conversation. Even if you can't understand it." The last part was spoken under her breath.

"She does have a point Rob. Leaders don't like it when you intrude on their territory without permission." Beast Boy said.

"I thought you'd be one to know that." Raven commented.

"But we have to know what we're up against." Robin protested.

"Yes, you'd be against us all, wouldn't you?" Shadow glared at him, the venom settling in her words.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You. Are not. Coming!" She began walking away, towards the open window.

"Yes we are." Robin protested, walking after her. She stiffened and looked like she was about to spin around and hit him. Then she relaxed, and when she did turn around, a very small smile was beneath her narrowed eyes.

"Fine, you can come. But if you piss someone off and don't come back, I'm not at fault." She turned around again abruptly and flew out the window as a large hawk. It was the first time they'd seen her change form, and while they knew she could, it was still a little shocking to see someone else do it besides Beast Boy. And the hawk wasn't green, so it was a harder target to spot once it got far off. Raven quickly went after her so at least one of them didn't lose her trail, and Beast Boy and Starfire picked up Robin and Cyborg and carried them off.

Raven was watching the bird twist and turn, dive and ascend. Shadow appeared to be having fun, or was trying to lose the sorceress. Either way Raven stayed on her until they were above a thick part of the forest on the outside of town, and the hawk suddenly dived straight for the ground. This caught the girl off guard, but she went after Shadow, watching as she turned into a spiral and then leveled off in time to land in a tree. The others arrived soon after, and everybody settled on the ground. Shadow was already on the move, walking along a small path animals had made. After about a minute of walking, her pace slowed and she lowered her head to look at the ground. The Titans thought she might just be looking for a track or something.

Suddenly a large white wolf jumped in front of them, growling and baring its teeth. They jumped back, but Shadow raised her head and began talking to it in her tongue. It cocked its head, and then lowered it and dropped its tail in submission. It turned to walk in front of them, apparently leading the group somewhere. Shadow's head lowered again. Then they arrived at the edge of a clearing. To their shock, there was a whole pack of Grey wolves in it, all circled around one, but looking where the group was. Without warning, Shadow dropped to one knee, her head very low. Robin and Beast Boy were on either side, and she reached up without looking to grab them by their uniforms and pull them sharply to the ground. The rest followed. Again she spoke in her tongue, and they could hear a wolf talking back to her. She pulled out the rose and laid it gently in front of her.

"I wish I knew what you were saying." Robin said, glancing over at her.

"I gave him my respects and showed him the reason I'm here. And that you followed me, even though I said not to." He looked up to see the shaggy grey wolf in the center staring at him, and knew the male was not pleased with their arrival against her orders. The wolf began to speak again, and Shadow rose her head slightly. "You don't recognize me?" She asked, and although they understood her perfectly, there was a hint of foreign beauty in her voice, signaling she was speaking in both tongues at once. Very odd to hear it. A questioning whine came from the wolf's maw. "Sonko, you silly mutt. It's me!" She raised her head up to stare him in the eye, and 'Sonko' backed up a step. Then his tail wagged a little. He took shaky steps towards the girl in black, and then she grabbed him in a hug. "I missed you too. It has been too long." A whine came from Sonko's chest, and she let him back up to look him in the eyes. Normally this was a threat, but between two old friends, it was merely a sign of connection. She was still speaking both languages, and didn't seem to realize this. "The last time I saw you, you were just a pup barely out of the den! And now look at you: leader of your pack, and the Kingdom. Who would have guessed?" Sonko spoke to her again, and her face strained to keep the smile in place. "There was an…incident. It kept me away for the last ten years. I guess you could call it being taken into captivity." He put a paw on her chest, and she held it, as if to tell her that it was alright. Then Sonko stood up and turned to go back to the middle of his pack, his old age obvious with every step. He settled himself onto the soft soil, and closed his eyes. The other pack members backed up and looked at Shadow. She gave a questioning look. "Sonko?" She stood up, carefully judging everybody's reaction, and walked over to the old wolf. When she got to his side she kneeled down on both knees and ran a hand over him.

Sonko raised his head and looked at her sadly. "I know. Many don't live past your age, and this is the only reason I've been chosen."

"What? Is something wrong?" Cyborg asked, though he was sure they all knew.

"The new ruler is only chosen when the prior is dead or dying. And since Sonko's not dead…"

"He's dying." Raven finished. Shadow nodded sadly, and continued to pet her friend.

"What? How can I help? Anything." Shadow said, apparently reacting to a last request. "No, I couldn't--" She was interrupted and he laid his head down again. The rest of the Titans came over slowly, making sure to get low again when they came near. "Okay, I'll try." They could see the sadness in that usually hard and angry face, and it tugged at something in them. She placed her hand where Sonko's heart was, and both closed their eyes. The air felt charged with energy, and suddenly the old wolf let out his final breath as Shadow whispered something in his ear. She leaned back, and they all knew what she'd done. His final request was that she take his life so he wouldn't suffer anymore, and she'd whispered her final good-bye. She hung he head so her dark hair would hide the tears, but they could still hear her trying to control the sobs. Every member of the pack lifted their jaws to let loose a mournful cry.

Beast Boy gently reached out to try and console her, and when his hand touched her shoulder, she didn't try to pull away. The emotional strain of finally seeing a good friend after ten years, and then having to send them to their final resting place must have been enough to make her momentarily forget her issue about contact. Subconsciously, Beast Boy began to rub his hand in lazy circles on her back, earning a slight twitch when it went across a sensitive area. In turn, Shadow was still petting the ragged grey fur of Sonko. The white she-wolf that had led them to the clearing now came and sat down in front of them, dropping the blue rose at her feet and looking up at Shadow expectantly. She took a deep and shaky breath, most of the pain vanishing, and nodded her head once. She took it and stood up tall. Now the wolves called again, but it was not in sadness. She was officially the new ruler of the Kingdom. Animal sounds from all over joined in the chorus, dying off after a minute. Robin began to stand up, when a black wolf growled at him fiercely. He sat back down, his eyes wide. The message was clear: The Alpha hasn't said you can rise yet. Shadow began to talk to the entire pack, and one grey and black canine stepped forward proudly. She nodded and said something else. They all nodded at her, and she told the Titans they could go now.

Once they were away from the clearing, Cyborg asked the question they were all wondering. "What did you do at the end?"

"I asked who was next in line of the hierarchy, and appointed him the new Alpha of their pack." Shadow explained, her tone strangely empty.

"Shadow?" Starfire asked. The girl nodded her acknowledgement to her. "Would you like to express your feelings about what has just happened?" She asked, referring to the death of her friend and her new status.

"No."

"But it may help--"

"Talking about it only makes it worse for me. Yet another reason I keep most things to myself. And if I do talk about it, it won't be now." Without waiting for a response, she turned into a hawk again and flew off towards the tower with the rose in her beak.

They later found her on the roof again, looking at the rose between her fingers. Deciding to leave her alone for the moment, they were trying to decide what they were doing for lunch when the alarm went off.

"It's Adonis again." Robin reported. "Um, Beast Boy? I think it'd be better if you stayed behind for now."

"What? Why?" Beast Boy asked.

"Considering what happened the last time you guys fought, we think it would just be better if we took care of it." Cyborg tried to explain.

"So, just because something bad happened last time, you think something will again?" Beast Boy asked, clearly insulted and mad.

"No, it's just, the history between you too isn't the kindest. And somebody still has to stay behind with Shadow." Robin said, making Beast Boy's stay official. Without another word they rushed off to stop the villain with a bigger ego than Robin, leaving behind the shifter once again. Beast Boy's shoulders slumped, and he decided to go see how Shadow was doing.

When he opened the door he found what he expected: Shadow still sitting against the edge and holding the rose. He slowly walked over to her, not wanting to spook the dark child and possibly receive the consequences in the form of pain. He knew she knew he was there, even if she didn't give him the slightest of glances, so when he sat down next to her a response caught him off guard.

"I suppose I _can_ be kind." Shadow said in a low tone, her gaze still focused on the flower in front of her.

"Anybody can be kind." Beast Boy replied, shaking off the slight shock and turning to look at her.

"No. Not if you've lived your entire life filled with secrets, hate, death, and sadness. You learn that kindness is not an option, not if you want to live another day."

"Oh. What did you mean earlier?"

"I killed, again. And an animal this time. But it was for something that I've never given before, something I thought didn't exist anymore in my blackened soul. It wasn't out of self defense, it wasn't because I had too, nor was it because I wanted to."

"What was it then?" He was a little disturbed about the topic of murder, but in an effort to continue the conversation he kept most of his thoughts at bay for the moment. Shadow turned her head so her emerald eyes were staring into his. There was such a barrage of emotions inhabiting them he almost thought she'd have to be a skitzo.

"Mercy." She turned back to the blue rose. "I killed him in mercy. My childhood friend that I haven't seen in ten years, and I took his life."

"He was old. You said yourself that he wouldn't have lived much longer anyway. If you hadn't, he would have suffered longer or another predator would have gotten to him. You did the right thing by laying him to rest before that could happen, and he knows it. Otherwise he wouldn't have asked you to do it."

"I suppose you're right. But I just, don't like doing it at all."

"Doing what?" He was playing dumb in order to keep her in this mode. Maybe he could get more information or find out more about what made her tick.

"Killing animals. Or hurting them in general. They're already being killed senselessly for fun and profit, we don't need to lose more to someone like me." She didn't notice the gentle hand placed upon her own free one.

"I know what you mean. That's one of the reasons I'm a vegetarian." He felt her tense; they'd already had a fight over that aspect of his life. Though Shadow had a lot of evidence and good points about why she thought being one was idiotic, it wouldn't change him. "What do you mean 'someone like you?'"

"I'm still part human, no matter how much I hate it. They don't have any right to do what they're doing, but they think they do. Any hunting other than for food or protection is wrong. I'm going to stop before I start ranting again." She gave a feeble attempt at a smile.

"He he. The last time we allowed you to do that you wouldn't shut up for five hours." Shadow grimaced.

"I think that was the most I've ever said at one time."

"Surprisingly you didn't repeat yourself once. Best speech I've ever heard." He smiled at her, who in turn lifted a corner of her mouth briefly. Only now did she realize that Beast Boy's gloved hand had been resting on her own for a while. He jerked his back and began to stutter pleads for her not to hurt him as he scooted away. Shadow just lifted her hand up slowly and brought it to her lap to help cradle the delicate flower. It hadn't wilted at all and was still very beautiful. Still sure she was just waiting for him to get close again, Beast Boy inched his way back towards the sitting girl. He looked like a scared animal wanting the food handout, but keeping a lookout for any sudden movements. "I'm sorry, I don't know why I keep doing that."

"Why do you bother with me? Everybody else leaved me alone, especially Raven, but you always have to know where I am, what I'm doing, how I'm feeling, what I'm thinking, etcetera."

"I don't know. Just trying to be nice?"

"More like trying to stalk me. What is your real reason? Am I honestly that interesting? Why can't you stay away from me no matter what I do or how much I scare you?" It was a demand, not a question. The shifter averted his gaze and mentally cursed her thirst for knowledge; her love of learning. He couldn't tell her, could he? He hadn't even told any of his friends because of their obvious disapproval when he messed up a while back. And he was positive she didn't feel the same way, or anything close to it.

"I--" Just as he was about to say something, Beast Boy's communicator went off. He flipped it open to reveal the face of Robin.

"Beast Boy, we need you down at the docks. We need your help, but _be careful _when you get here. We don't need another accident."

"What about Shadow?" His eyes flicked toward her for a split second.

"Bring her along. She might just be useful if she decides to help out."

"Will do. We're on our way." He disconnected and looked at the female next to him, grateful for anything that got him out of answering.

"What's your foe like?" Shadow asked.

"Stupid, egotistic, and rude." Beast Boy spat.

"And he needs a good beating?" Yep, she was going to help. He saw her own smirk of anticipation and gave her his own.

"Definitely. Now lets go." They shifted into birds and took off for the city docks, ready to woop some moron butt.

(A/N: Uh, so yeah. Poor Beast Boy lol. How long can his secret crush remain a secret? And what is Adonis up to now? gasp I wonder if he still remembers the Game, which I (and anyone else participating) just lost; Well, it's one in the morning, I still have 15 songs left on my playlist, and I need to add a few to my iPod, so I'll be up for a little longer. I can't work on my movie while listening to music, my site is pretty much finished whenitcomestowar., my friend's site is pretty much finished as well wolvesoftheworld1., so I might check out what other stories are up. Good morning!)


	17. Chapter 17

(A/N: Woot! More people who like my story So, yeah sorry about uploading three chapters at once. If I haven't already told you, I thought I'd already updated through chapter 15, but it was a lie. I wonder what's going to happen when Adonis meets Shadow? I can only imagine the horrors he might be put through lol. I don't know what made the last chapter so weird. Whenever I pressed Enter, it spaced it twice no matter what I did. Anyway, sorry for not updating sooner, but I've been working on my book. Yes, I'm writing a book and it's coming along very well Anyway, this might be the last chapter of this story. Now wait a minute, stop yelling. Don't you remember me telling you a couple times that this would have a sequel? Good reader, here's a cookie.)

When the two birds of prey landed outside of an abandoned warehouse, they could already hear the commotion.

"Sounds like Adonis is giving them a hard time." Beast Boy observed, throwing open the doors and rushing in. He looked back to see if Shadow was coming, only to find out she was nowhere in sight. Before he could ponder over this he was alerted by Robin to come help them.

"You can't beat Adonis! Adonis is supreme!" The car part-covered idiot bellowed, deflecting yet another attack.

"Great. He's speaking in third person now." Raven commented, throwing a crate at the villain.

"Beast Boy, can you pin him?" Robin asked, flipping back away from a swing at his smaller body.

"I'll try." He turned into a grizzly bear and tackled Adonis. A pushing match ensued, but eventually Adonis overthrew Beast Boy and tossed him away. Starfire came in once again with a flurry of star bolts, but the man coated in metal wasn't affected. Cyborg rushed in to deliver a blow, but his arm was caught and he was also tossed away. Robin tried to blind Adonis, but an arm thrown up prevented any damage. Raven tried casting a spell on him, but was knocked aside before her chant could be completed.

"Do you dare challenge me again?" Adonis shouted, looking at the fallen teens. Just as another attack was about to be initiated, the Titans spotted something behind the villain. Hidden in the shadows was Shadow. She was so well hidden the only reason they could tell she was there was because she was moving. Her suit allowed her to scale walls like a fly, and they could barely see her moving down the wall headfirst. She positioned herself and leaped at Adonis' back, but he sensed her somehow and spun around to catch the girl in midair. He pinned her down on the ground and leaned in close. "And who would this be?" He purred.

"Get. Off!" Shadow commanded while struggling.

"Why would I want to do that? You look like fun." He received a vicious glare as a response. Adonis merely chuckled, the other people temporarily forgotten. She was about to react when the annoyance pinning her down was suddenly knocked aside by a large, green bull.

"Stay away from her!" Beast Boy yelled, once again in his normal form.

"Ooh, jealous are we?" Adonis mocked. "Of course she would like me better. You're just some scrawny, green freak. And I'm a handsome, strong, hunk." He flexed his muscles and grinned.

"I don't like anybody. Especially people who assume I'd like them." Shadow was standing and raised an arm at the man in red. A quick snap of the wrist and he was instantly incased in black. Adonis struggled to break free, even more so when he realized he was quickly freezing. The metal had begun to frost under the blanket of black ice and he could feel the blood draining from his face as it rushed to keep his vital organs warm.

"What's going on? Let me go!" He managed to chatter out. By now he had a slight but increasing case of frostbite, and his suit was starting to crack in places. The Titans knew they had to stop the situation and fast, or in only a minute he'd be solid ice.

"Shadow, stop! Let him down!" Robin rushed over and tried to make her give up her hold, but the look in her eyes told him she didn't want to stop anytime soon. Even worse, Beast Boy seemed to be enjoying it as well. Starfire tried blasting the dark magic away, but it was to no affect. Cyborg had the same reaction, and it seemed to absorb Raven's magic. Robin stood directly in front of Shadow and gripped her shoulders. "Put. Him. Down." He demanded, and after she glared at his mask for a moment, Adonis was released. She jerked away from Robin and turned her back on them. She mumbled something that sounded like 'I never get to have any fun when you're around' and began to stalk off.

The Titans went to check on the villain and it was discovered that if he had been held for a second longer, his condition would have been too bad for him to recover. His face was blue and he was shivering and chattering uncontrollably.

"He'll be okay, but man it was close." Cyborg reported.

"Let's get him to jail. They can take care of him there. Then I'm going to have a talk with Shadow." Robin stated, and they waited for the police to show up after calling them. Once Adonis was loaded and headed for the jail's personal hospital, the Titans headed back home. They found that Shadow was, once again, in Beast Boy's room.

"I still say he deserved it." Beast Boy grumbled as he and Robin stood outside of said room.

"Nobody deserves to be nearly turned into a human ice sculpture." Robin said.

"Not even Slade?" Beast Boy questioned. There was silence from the other side of the conversation. "Thought so." Robin moved to open the door, and Beast Boy grabbed his arm. "Okay so maybe she went a little too far. Who hasn't?"

"She's dangerous Beast Boy. If she's going to stay here we have to make sure something like this won't happen again."

"All of us are dangerous! And there's nothing anyone can do to guarantee one of us won't harm someone again. I mean, from what we know she's spent most of her life hurting people. It isn't easy to change something rooted in you just like that."

"She has to. I don't care if it was in self defense, she's grown up a killer and if she wants to stay she has to change. And since I can't just let her go traipsing through the city, she has to change anyway." He turned to enter the room.

"Please don't scare her away." Robin turned back because of what he'd said, and the desperation it was said with.

"What?" Robin asked, baffled.

"I, I asked you not to scare her away." He dropped his eyes. "She has nowhere else to go and," he tried to think of more excuses, though real as the last one was, to add, "and it's nice having her around." The last part was barely audible and a light blush appeared on his cheeks.

"What was that?"

"It, um, she's nice to have around." He couldn't think of anything else to say, and wasn't sure he wanted to. The blush intensified, and he still wouldn't meet his leader's masked eyes.

"I could argue against that. Why do you even like her?"

"Sh! She'll hear you!" He clamped a hand over Robin's mouth, which was yanked away soon after.

"Look, I'm talking to her and that's final. If you argue with me again I'll make you do ten laps around the tower." Robin threatened. Beast Boy glared, but it seemed to get through as he stomped off.

The Titans' leader opened the door to find his target lounging on the bed with a book. He saw that the title read Ancient Torture Techniques and stored it away. Her hand reached beside her and grasped a thin piece of paper without looking, and after a pause placed in between the pages of the book and set it down. Only then did Shadow look at him.

"She did help us in battle." Starfire agreed. The rest of the team was talking about Shadow and what had happened.

"Yeah, but she nearly killed him." Raven countered.

"Come on, everybody messes up once in a while!" Beast Boy pleaded.

"Well sure. But it didn't look like that was an accident." Cyborg said.

"Sometimes dark magic is hard to control, but I didn't sense any kind of struggle when she was using it." Raven stated.

"So, she really was trying to harm Adonis?" Starfire questioned. Raven nodded.

"Although, it might not have been entirely her."

"What do you mean?" Cyborg asked.

"What I mean," Raven clarified, "is that I felt another presence near her. Or rather, coming from her."

"Huh?" Beast Boy asked.

"You know how every person and animal has their own aura?" They nodded, having heard her speak of it before. "Well, there seemed to be two around Shadow. And when she pulled back her powers, it disappeared. I could be wrong of course, but that's what I felt."

"But what could it have been?" Starfire asked.

"I don't know."

"Shadow, we have to talk." Robin took a step closer and the door slid shut. She sat up more and turned to face him. "It's about what you did to Adonis."

"What about it?"

"We appreciate your help, but you went too far."

"I know. I didn't mean to, and I'm contrite."

"It's not as simple as that." He wondered why she didn't just say sorry, instead of contrite. "You're dangerous and we can't risk you hurting someone again."

"The only way to do that would be to find some way to actually contain me, and place me in a windowless box. Even then I might still be able to hurt people. But that's not the point is it?"

"No. Look, we can't let you stay here, or be free, unless we can trust you not to hurt someone."

"Then you should know you'll never be able to trust me in that aspect. Even if I don't even slap someone for ten years, there's always a chance I'll snap. That goes for all of us." Robin sighed, knowing she was right.

"Will you at least _try_?"

"That depends." Robin frowned.

"On what?"

"On whether I stay or not." She dropped her eyes slightly. "I have somewhere to go, I'm not particularly fond of you or your team, and you make me feel caged, but I just don't know if I want to leave."

"How come? You just listed three good reasons to."

"I don't know. Something's telling me to stay, or that I can, or something. You piss me off like there's no tomorrow, but at the same time you don't. Gah, I hate this." She put her head in her hands and thought for several minutes. Robin was about to say one final thing and leave when she sighed raised her head. "I suppose since I've already told you all so much, I might as well stay. With your permission of course." Robin was taken aback slightly. Now he really had to think. He had the power to make her leave, or let her stay. He considered every possibility, every thing she'd done, everything she could do that he knew of. Several minutes passed and finally, he spoke.

"After careful consideration, and under the condition that you try your best to remain as unlethal as possible, you may stay with us." His tone was all business.

"I thank you for your consideration and acceptance." Her tone was the same, but he could have sworn a corner of her mouth twitched like she was about to smile. They nodded to each other and Robin walked out.

When he walked back into the common room he found a site he found normal. Cyborg and Beast Boy were playing videogames, Starfire was trying to talk to Raven, and Raven was trying to ignore her while drinking tea and reading a book. Robin smiled slightly and went to watch his two male teammates battle it out via a digital screen. They stayed in a somewhat happy family state for a few hours. When it was around dark, Shadow walked in slowly. In her hands was the blue rose, surprisingly still not wilted. At first nobody paid any special attention to the fact she had walked in, but when Robin saw she was holding the rose again, he stood up. This caused everyone else to take notice.

"What is it?" Cyborg asked, pausing the game.

"Is something wrong Friend Shadow?" Starfire asked with concern.

"I was wondering if I might plant this in your garden." Shadow answered.

"I don't think it'll do any good. Even if it had roots, it's too cold and late in the season for anything to grow." Cyborg explained. When Shadow merely stared at him he dragged a hand down his face. "Let me guess: It's a special rose, isn't it?"

"Yes, very. And it will not wilt for a while, if ever. But it still needs a place to root, a place I intend to stay for a while." Beast Boy's eyes lit up.

"So, you're staying?" He asked. When Shadow nodded he had to restrain himself from getting up and dancing.

"Of course you may plant it in my garden!" Starfire exclaimed. She then led the other girl outside and around to the wilting garden, her friends in tow. Shadow chose a large area where the shade of the tree would shield the plant partly, once everything was in full bloom again. The ground here was still soft, and she dug a shallow hole and put the stem in. after patting it down and making sure it would stay upright, she stood again.

"Now what?" Beast Boy asked with both excitement and confusion.

"Now, we wait."

"For what?" Robin asked.

"For it to grow. Despite the cold it should be a healthy bush within a few weeks."

"Okay, a couple questions. First of all, why will it grow even in winter?" Cyborg asked.

"Because the current ruler can fall at anytime, and the rose must be ready to be presented when it is needed."

"So that's why it grows fast." Raven stated, already beginning to understand.

"Why does it have to be in a place you're staying at for a while?" Robin asked.

"So I can tend to it. Special or not, it's still a plant." The cold soon got to them and they headed back inside, asking for hot chocolate. For the next hour or so they watched TV, drank hot chocolate, and watched the first flakes of an early snow fall towards Earth. Soon they grew tired and said their goodnights, heading to the warmth of their beds. With everybody tucked in and ready for sleep, their minds had time to think of dreams to entertain them with. But while the others dreamt, one talked, and with herself.

'_What now?' _

'_**Oh, not glad to hear from me? I've left you alone for quite a while now.'**_

'_But you were influencing me today. During the fight.'_

'_**Only a little my dear. You and I both know you wanted to, I was merely enjoying the sight.'**_

'_I wonder if the others ever have conversations with themselves. Maybe Raven does.'_

'_**You're not focusing. You know the reason I'm here.'**_

'_What? Because I decided to stay here? Is it really all that bad?'_

'_**But there is a HUMAN among them! You should have struck him down the first chance you got! You already know how sweet his blood tastes, why not have it all?'**_

'_Because.'_

'_**Both of us know that isn't an answer.'**_

'_I don't know! He just, hasn't really done anything bad enough to deserve it. And don't start on me about all humans deserving death, because I know this already. But he hasn't deserved it from me. Yet.'_

'_**If you continue to defy me--'**_

'_What? You'll give me horrible nightmares? Done.'_

'_**Do you remember a few weeks ago when they poisoned you again?'**_

'_Yes…'_

'_**Good. Because as it turns out, I found a way to keep it in your system, without harming you. And I can release the full force of it at anytime I choose.'**_

'_You wouldn't dare!'_

'_**Watch me.'**_

A feeling like water flowing over her rushed through Shadow, and she instantly felt sick and dizzy. Knowing it would get much worse quickly and that her strong stomach might not hold for much longer, she threw the covers off and pushed herself off the bed. A wave of dizziness almost knocked her back down, but she forced her legs to move forward until she made it out the door. All of this went unnoticed by the slumbering shifter.

Robin awoke sometime during the night as the need to use the bathroom swept over him. His course to said room would take him down the hall Beast Boy's room was in. As he walked along groggily, a sudden sound brought him to alert. It was close by, towards his fellow teammate's sleeping quarters, and it was loud. He froze and listened to see if it happened again. He had just decided it must have been the tower settling when it happened again. A thump and sliding sound, along with a few quieter thumps. Not knowing what it could be, he drew his bo-staff incase it was an enemy, and slowly inched into the hallway. There was the sound again, accompanied by a low groan and finally a heavy thump. Keeping his weapon at hand, Robin took a few more steps into the dark. Whatever it was, it was very near. Suddenly he found himself lurching forward in an effort not to fall, and failing. Quickly recovering himself, he brought out a small flashlight now that the element of surprise was gone, and aimed it at the direction his feet were in. What he saw baffled him. Leaning against the wall will her legs in the middle of the hallway, was Shadow. That's what he had tripped over. She must have been stumbling down the hallway. That would explain the strange noises. She slowly brought her legs back into herself as if apologizing for what had happened. A racking cough soon explained why she was like this in the first place.

"Shadow? Are you okay?" He sat up and walked over so he could see her face. He received a groan as a reply, and she tried to look away from him; possibly because of the bright light. She coughed again, but was soon able to quiet it. She hadn't even been showing signs of illness not even an hour ago, and now she looked really sick. "Hey, come one, talk to me. What's wrong?" It looked like she was using a lot of energy just to keep breathing, but he had to know just how serious it was. After a few wheezing breaths, she was able to speak one word.

"Poison." Robin's eyes widened.

"Come on. I'm going to take you to the sick bay." He reached to grab one of her arms and help her up, but she shook her head.

"No. I'll be fine." She said between short breaths.

"Shadow, if you've been poisoned then--" He saw something in her face he'd never seen before: pleading. Apparently she _really_ didn't like hospital rooms. "Then can I make a compromise with you?" She nodded. "Let me at least take you into the common room. I can get you some soup or something, and you can lay down and rest. If you need anything else I can go get it." Again she nodded weakly, and he wrapped his arms around her to help heave her into a standing position. Despite being skinny, she was heavier than he thought. It was most likely because she was over half deadweight due to her condition, but she wasn't a feather either. She tried to help though, and braced herself with a hand on the wall when she was upright. After a moment Robin got her moving, slow as it was.

It seemed like years before they reached the doors of the common room. He lead her down the steps and over to the couch. He eased her down until she was sitting on her own, and then stood up. "Do you know anything about what poison you're gotten?" He had to know the affects and possible cures. She nodded once again, but seemed to look for something. "What do you want?" He asked, also looking around. She made the motion of writing on a piece of paper, and he understood. It was probably better she saved her breath and didn't talk anyway. He retrieved the items and she began to write. After a minute he was handed the paper.

_I don't know what it's called, but it's been used on me before. Because my body can resist most illness, disease, and natural poisons, they made new ones just for me. That's why I wouldn't eat anything when I first got here, in suspicion it might be poisoned. Anywho, this one has the affects of the flu or a bad cold on me. I feel as a normal person would when afflicted with one of these, if not a little worse. I should be back to normal by tomorrow, or close to it._

"Okay. But how come you're feeling like this? If it had somehow been put in the food, wouldn't we all be in the same situation? And I highly doubt you did it to yourself." She shook her head and reached for the paper, which he handed over.

_Draklata. Don't ask a bunch of questions about her right now, be she found a way to keep it in my system without harming me. Apparently I ticked her off so she released it into my system again._

"Okay, I won't ask questions. Is there, anything I can do to help?" Even if he didn't like Shadow a lot, he still felt bad that she was feeling under the weather. It looked like she was about to shake her head, when her clouded eyes widened a little and she reached out a hand, already attempting to stand. He pulled her up and she pushed away from him, heading for the kitchen. Either she was already feeling better or whatever she needed was urgent. He followed her incase she needed help, and suddenly knew why she had gotten up when she leaned over the sink and retched. He held her hair back and turned away, trying to block out the sounds. After while the spasms stopped, having long ago emptied anything that was in her stomach. He helped clean her up and then lead the sick girl back to the couch. This time she laid down along it. Her breathing sounded a little better already, but otherwise nothing seemed to have changed.

"Thank you." She rasped out.

"You're welcome." He figured she was going to fall asleep there, so he went to the linen closet and grabbed a few blankets and pillows. If he had known how motherly he looked while tucking her in, Robin might have shot himself. But, as he did not, he continued to get her ready to sleep on the couch. "Will you be okay here?" He wasn't sure if he wanted to leave her like this, but he still needed to go to the bathroom and his bed called to him.

"Mm hm." She was already halfway back to sleep, and after a moment Robin nodded and began to walk away. To his surprise he felt a hand gripping at his arm, and he turned back to see Shadow looking up at him. He was suddenly reminded of how a sick child looked and how they reached out for their parents. Resisting the urge to smile, he gently took her hand off his arm.

"Do you want me to stay?" Her eyes now closed, Shadow nodded. He debated it for a moment. "Okay. Let me go to the bathroom and get some blankets for myself.

When he came back it looked like Shadow was already asleep, and he considered just going back to bed. But he said he'd stay, and it couldn't hurt anything. After making his bed on the floor near the couch, he settled in for the night. As he felt his eyes close and sleep find him, he also felt a hand on his shoulder and smiled. She really was an overgrown child at times.

(A/N: Well there you go Oh, and don't get any ideas about the two of them. She doesn't like him like that, or vice versa. Being sick does strange things to you. I can remember even reaching out to my _sister_ for comfort. When I do that, you know I'm past loony. I don't think I really have much more to say other than please review, so I'll let you go back to your lives now.)


	18. Chapter 18

(A/N: Okay, I lied. But, even if it takes 20 pages, this will be the final chapter to part one! Oh, four of our cats are now missing and there have been a lot of reports about owls taking cats and small dogs really recently. So, very worried. Especially since the last two just got here and don't know the area or us very well. I'm sure Spot is dead. It's been over a month that he's been missing =*{ But enough of my troubles, let's read a story about someone with more!)

_A cloaked figure ran ahead of him, occasionally uttering a giggle. He ran after, determined to catch this mysterious figure. But no matter how fast he ran, it seemed to run faster. Eventually it disappeared altogether, and he was left panting for breath. Darkness, all around. It seemed to choke the very life out of the blank landscape. There was no light at all, but he could see himself just fine. Suddenly a large red circle enclosed him. It seemed to flicker orange and red and he took a step closer to get a better look. But as he leaned down the thin circle shot up and he was surrounded by hot flames. The sound they made was angry and menacing, but the laugh he heard nearby chilled his very core. He spun but all he could see was towering fire, and the heat was growing by the second. He stripped off his shirt to try and relieve is body of the heat, but it only helped for a moment. There was no escape to be seen, and when he tried to shift into an animal it didn't work. The flames in front of him parted for an instant to allow something in. what he saw before him was the last thing he expected to see. Standing before him was the girl he had fallen for. But her stance mocked that of Slade's, and her expression was that of a cat knowing the mouse was trapped with nowhere to go. He took a step back in fear, and felt the heat from the fire grow. There were still a few feet between him and the flames, but he could feel the intensity just as well. Shadow was standing in front of him farther away. She tilted her head slightly, the expression not changing._

"_What's the matter? It's just a little fire."_

"_What's going on? And why are you looking at me like that?" He had to practically shout to be heard over the roar of the flames, and he was sweating profusely._

"_You wanted to know my name. You want to know everything about me. There is only one way to do that, and I'm afraid your mission cannot be accomplished without great risk and much knowledge."_

"_What?" He backed up as far as he could without the flames grabbing him when she began to come closer. Shadow was now only inches away, and she now sported a light frown._

"_I know you're smarter than that, so figure it out. There is something I can tell you now though. There is another name I am called often, but only in the minds of those who experience it."_

"_What is it?" He asked shakily. Despite her being right in front of him, he was seriously thinking of striping to nothing just to try and cool down. He never knew fire could be so damned __**hot**__. Shadow leaned in even closer, and whispered into his ear._

"_Death." Before he could react, she shoved him into the wall of fire, and the last thing he heard were her horrible laughs before the flames engulfed him._

Beast Boy woke up screaming, and hit his head on the ceiling. He quickly checked himself over for burns or flames, and then looked around his room. Empty. He sighed as his breathing and heart rate came back down, and only then noticed his recent headache.

"Ow!" He groaned and gently rubbed his poor forehead. He was covered in sweat and felt very hot, and had somehow taken his nightshirt off sometime in the night. First he was confused, and then the dream came flooding back to him. "What was _that_ about?" He asked himself absently, but the lingering feeling of fear would not leave him alone. He untangled himself from the covers and climbed down the ladder. He would get dressed later; right now he just wanted something to eat and to wake up more. He found, not to his surprise, that the bottom bunk was empty again. He slowly made his way towards the common room and kitchen.

He was up a lot earlier than normal, and at first glance it seemed that he was the only one in the common room. The sun had yet to fully come up despite it being close to six thirty, but the light there allowed his eyes to see well enough. For someone else it would probably look dark still, but his animal DNA provided him with excellent night vision. He went over to the fridge and grabbed a carton of soy milk, then grabbed some cereal from the cupboard. He made his breakfast and sat down at the table. The spoon was almost to his waiting mouth when he saw something and put it down. Beast Boy got up and went over to the couch. He didn't know what he had expected to see, but if definitely wasn't this. Shadow was sleeping soundly on the couch, and Robin was sprawled out on the floor in front of the piece of furniture. The feeling of fear tried to come back when he saw the sleeping girl, but confusion knocked it out of the way. What was she doing out here? And why was Robin on the floor? Both of them looked sound asleep, so he would have to wait for his answers. Neither of them was a good person to wake up, and he wasn't looking forward to more training or some random injury. Beast Boy went back to his cereal to wait for one of them to awaken, or at least another of his friends to come down.

It was another half hour before Raven came down for her tea and some toast. She discovered an odd sight: Shadow on the couch, Robin on the floor in front of said couch, and Beast Boy asleep at the table. Just another day in the Titans' Tower. She finished her tea, made her toast, and sat down at the table near Beast Boy. She was curious why each of them were in here, sleeping, in odd places, but didn't want to wake them up. The green teen next to her muttered something in his sleep that sounded like "Fuzzy pink bunnies" before settling down again. Raven rolled her eyes.

A few hours later Cyborg and Starfire had come in to see the strange sight too, and the smell of breakfast soon wafted through the room. Cyborg was cooking up a meat-involved meal, while Starfire went over to try and wake her boyfriend up and ask why he was sleeping on the floor. Shadow and Beast Boy soon awoke to the smell of bacon, for completely different reasons.

"Cyborg! How many times have I told you not to cook that when I'm around?"

"You were sleeping at the table. I can't exactly move the kitchen, and I'm hungry."

"Just drop it veggie boy. I'm tired of hearing you two fighting over the same damn thing." They looked over to see a still-half-asleep Shadow pulling herself up from the couch.

"So leave!" Beast Boy countered.

"I was here first. For what I don't exactly remember, but I know I was."

"You don't remember why you're sleeping on the couch?" Cyborg asked, flipping his meat.

"Well it had something to do with me being sick, but the rest is just bits and pieces." She looked over to find Starfire poking Robin's arm. "Never mind, I remember." She said, all of it coming back to her.

"Robin? Please awaken so I may speak with you and you may enjoy Cyborg's cooking the fast of break." Starfire said, shaking him a little. He merely rolled over and muttered something in sleep-talk. Either he hadn't gotten much sleep lately, or the floor was _really_ comfortable. He sat up with a start, however, when his cheek received a stern smack, courtesy of the girl lying above him.

"Ow! What was that for?" He rubbed the offended skin and glared at Shadow, knowing Starfire hadn't done it.

"She wants to talk to you." He turned back to his girlfriend as the other young woman stepped over him to walk into the kitchen.

"Robin? Why have you chosen the floor to sleep?" Starfire began to question, and Robin proceeded to explain while getting up.

"Yeah, why were you two over there?" Cyborg asked as he put down a couple plates of pancakes, eggs, and bacon. Everyone at the table quickly placed what they wanted on their plates.

"I said I was sick." Shadow repeated, covering her pancakes in syrup and butter.

"For one night?" He was sure there was more.

"Yes." Her tone meant she was done talking, but they wanted answers.

"I don't believe it. I know you're different and all, but nobody is sick enough to end up on the couch for only one night." Beast Boy pressed. He received a glare in return, but ignored it.

"Look, I wasn't feeling well so I was trying to go to the bathroom, Robin found me and dragged me in here. If you want details ask him." She snapped, shoving a piece of egg into her mouth. Said person and girlfriend came over then and put together their own plates.

"Well?" Beast Boy asked Robin.

"Well what?" He repeated.

"Why were you and Shadow sleeping in here?" Cyborg asked, his curiosity showing through. When someone normally sleeps in their room or another place and you suddenly find them somewhere else, not to mention with some_one_ else, questions were raised.

"Oh." He glanced at Shadow to make sure he could tell them all; he didn't have to worry about Starfire using the information for blackmail. She nodded, but something in her eyes didn't want him to talk about how she had reached out to him. He understood and began telling them what happened.

"Okay. Now it makes sense." Cyborg said.

"Yeah, perfectly understandable." Beast Boy agreed.

"Why did you have to prod anyway?" Raven questioned.

"Yeah. What did _you_ think we were doing there?" Shadow pushed, her eyes narrowing slightly. Both Beast Boy and Cyborg sweat dropped and looked at each other.

"Nothing, we were just curious." The metal teen replied with a nervous chuckle.

"Yeah. It's not like we thought something had gone on between you--" Beast Boy was elbowed by his friend and his eyes widened when he realized what he had just said. "I mean I--it wasn't supposed-- please--" He began to stammer.

"I don't know whether to laugh, or hurt you." Shadow growled.

"Same here." Robin agreed. Beast Boy began to sweat and pray to remain unharmed, or at least allowed to live. After a moment Shadow scoffed and rolled her eyes before returning to her food. Robin also went back to eating and the tense atmosphere faded back to normal. In his mine the shifter breathed a sigh of relief, and made a note to watch his mouth. Whether he could stick to that note only time would tell.

When the news came on some time later, Robin turned on the TV to watch. They went through the usual stories and the weather, most of it being tuned out by the other residents. But one story peaked all of their interest, especially a certain dark-haired girl with green eyes.

"_Breaking news! It appears there is a horse loose in the city running panicked_._"_ A live feed showed. _"The cause is unknown why this animal is in the city and why it seems to be so terrified. One theory is because of the recent wildfires…" _The rest was lost as the Titans turned suddenly to see Shadow leaping out the window and turning into a bird. After a quick look at each other they went after her.

The sounds of angry hoof beats and frightened calls reached their ears long before the Titans could see the portion of the city the wild animal was storming through. The site they found was both dangerous and awe striking. A small group of people had found some ropes and were now trying to capture the horse. Their attempts were in vain, however, as the animal twisted away from everyone and shook off the ropes that did manage to touch hide.

"We've got to get her under control or she's going to end up hurting someone." Robin proclaimed.

"Or they will hurt her." Shadow glanced at Robin in a way that angered him to no end, stating so boldly she only cared for the animal's well being and would be perfectly happy if a person was harmed.

"Cyborg and Starfire, I want you to get those people out of the way. Raven and Beast Boy try to find out why she's spooked. I'll see if I can get some people to make a barricade with their cars. Shadow?"

"Yes?" She almost looked hopeful.

"Stay put."

"But--"

"No buts. Titans go!" The team rushed into action to do what they were assigned, leaving a grumbling loner to herself. _'This isn't right! I should be the one helping out, not them! I mean, who better to deal with a situation like this than the Queen? Or at least someone who has a deep knowledge of the language.' _She shook her head sadly when the black mare shied away from a green horse and tried to take off in the opposite direction, only to be blocked by a shield of black.

"I can't get inside its mind and it can obviously see the discoloration Beast Boy's forms have." Raven informed the others. The people had scattered to a safe distance, but a few stupid onlookers still had to dodge the large animal as she tried desperately to get away. To their surprise, not even the cars helped as it leaped over the nearest with graceful ease. This was definitely not like any other horses they'd heard about, at least not for its smaller size. The Titans went in for another attempt to contain the wild animal when Shadow stepped in its path.

"I told her to stay put!"

"And you really thought she was going to listen?" Raven countered.

"Easy, easy. I'm not going to hurt you." Shadow spoke calmly, holding a hand out with the palm facing up. The horse snorted and back up a step again, her ears flattened and her eyes wide. "Come on, it's okay." The horse didn't come closer, but she didn't back away either. She seemed to repeat her question in her own tongue and the mare's ears flicked forward a little. She snorted and pawed the ground one, a clanging sound coming from the motion. She was now speaking between languages in that creepy yet beautiful way it sounded when she did that. Then she tried to take a step forward, but went back to standing when the horse snorted her objection. "Fine, I'll just stand here. Why are you in the city?" She flicked her eyes over to the Titans' little group as one of the horse's ears did the same. The equine nickered a little. "So it _was_ the fires. Or is that all of it?" Her tone held suspicion, and the horse blew air out her nostrils.

"What is she talking about?" Cyborg asked.

"I don't know, but I think she suspects another reason for that horse suddenly showing up here like that." Robin replied.

"And what was with that jumping over the car stuff? I've never known a horse that size able to jump like that without injuring itself." Beast Boy scanned the animal's form once again, finding nothing out of the ordinary that could suggest such a feat was possible. Now Shadow had lapsed into the Language, and had begun to move closer while speaking softly. At first she backed up with her ears flattened and her teeth bared. Then she seemed to relax, though still didn't seem pleased to have something coming near her.

When Shadow was only a couple feet away, she stopped and once more held out a hand. The glove peeled back on its own and disappeared into the rest of the suit to reveal her hand. The horse looked startled at first, as were the Titans, but then came slowly forward. The air of caution had not left its demeanor, but she didn't look angry anymore.

"I think she's getting through!" Beast Boy whispered happily.

"I think so too." Cyborg agreed.

"Please, why are we doing the quiet speaking?" Starfire asked, hovering next to Robin.

"It's whispering. And we're being quiet so we don't spook the horse again." Robin replied. Now the two were close enough to touch, but when Shadow's hand met the equine's muzzle, something happened they didn't think would. Both eyes, mouth, and nostrils of each expelled a bright white light with a touch of blue in it for a few seconds. The energy in the air could be felt, and some of the Titans felt their hackles stand up. When it ended, the girl and horse jumped back quickly.

"What just happened?" Cyborg asked.

"I don't know." Beast Boy said.

"It looks like they don't either." Raven pointed out. Indeed Shadow and the horse held a look of shock and were staring at each other. The former raised her exposed hand to look at it, as if that would explain everything. She walked forward slowly again, this time moving to the mare's left side. All the time she kept her eyes on the horse's, as if making sure the large creature wasn't going to suddenly try and bite her or spook on purpose. When she reached the hind flank, she gave one last look as if asking permission to touch her. A slight nod was the response, and Shadow ran her hand over it, stopping about mid-thigh.

The Titans had a hard time seeing her now, their friend being shorter than the horse by at least an inch. It seemed she had found something because she didn't move for a bit, and then came around the other side with a look of skepticism and knowing at the same time. A hand trailed along the body of the mare to make sure she knew she was there. It didn't seem necessary, however, as one ear followed her sounds as she moved. When Shadow arrived at the right front hoof, she bent down, gave an asking look and received a go ahead, then picked the hoof up. They could see what looked like a shoe on the hoof, and this only furthered their curiosity. Why would a wild horse have shoes? And if it was an escaped tame horse, where was the owner? Surely they would be here by now to get her back?

"It can't be." Shadow stood up and took a step back with awe on her face.

"What? What's wrong?" Robin called.

"Wind Racer?" She spoke as someone did when finally realizing the person they had been talking to was an old friend. The horse reared and neighed, throwing her mane back, then landed heavily. Shadow didn't flinch. Instead, she walked back around so she was facing the mare, and kneeled as she did to Sonko. "It is my greatest honor to be in the presence as such of yourself." She spoke between tongues again.

"I'm so confused!" Beast Boy grabbed his head and spun. When Shadow stood up Wind Racer also bowed deeply. After they straightened, Shadow walked over to the Titans.

"Understandable, Beast Boy. But let me clarify what I just found out." She looked over her shoulder at the horse, which blew air out of her nostrils and shifted her weight. "Believe it or not, but that horse right there is thousands of years old."

"WHAT??!!" Everybody replied. She nodded.

"But how is that possible?" Robin asked, baffled.

"Because one of my ancestors put a spell on her long ago. It allowed her to live this long, but stay physically the same age."

"And how old would that be?" Cyborg asked.

"Four."

"So, she's a young adult? Er, sorta." Beast Boy questioned.

"Right."

"Who was this ancestor of yours that put the spell on her?" Starfire asked.

"Most likely it was Hanara. She was very skilled in magic when she was alive."

"So she was a witch?" Raven asked.

"Not a witch. A _sorceress_. And possibly the greatest that ever lived. She could do the most complicated and spells and concoct the most intricate and powerful potions." She said this last with an air of admiration.

"Okay. So why was the spell placed?" Raven asked.

"I don't think even Hanara was completely sure. But there was a reason, that's for sure. I think Natsala told her to put the spell on Wind Racer."

"Natsala?" Robin asked.

"Does it sound familiar Beast Boy?" Shadow asked. He brought his thumb and pointer finger together until they were about half and inch apart. "Thought so." She turned back to the entire group. "Natsala is, well she's Mother Nature. And the ruler of all. She created every living thing you see before you, every body of water, every mountain, everything that defines Earth."

"So, she's like God?" Cyborg asked. At this he received a vicious glare.

"Natsala is _not_ God." She spat. "That _thing_ gained enough power somehow and forced itself into her own power. By using her ways of evolution, it created its own species that would destroy the Earth as time went on. By the time she realized what was going on, there were too many for a natural disaster to wipe out without harming the rest of the planet. At first she tried to teach them the ways of the Kingdom, and for a while they went along. But then they started believing in something other than her, and became evil. They claimed some higher power said animals were put on the planet the serve _them_, for _their_ amusement, and at _their_ disposal. And then, to make things worse, another energy form was created. You now know it as my father, and they blamed this one for all their wrong doings. If something happened that was out of their control, it was either God's will or Satan's curse. They can't take responsibility for their own actions, and both form's power continues to grow as more believe in them." She heaved a shaking sigh, filled with rage. "Natsala is the only higher power, and she cares enough to take an active role in the lives of her children. That's all I have to say." Shadow closed her eyes and trembled for a moment longer before she seemed calm again.

"Sheesh, sorry. I didn't mean to upset you." Cyborg replied.

"Is that true? What you said?" Beast Boy asked. He received a nod.

"Probably isn't something you like to hear, is it?" He shook his head. "Well, the truth isn't always pretty and sugar coated. But, back to the original subject. Wind Racer is one of Natsala's messengers, which may explain why the spell was placed. You see, Hanara was one of the few who still believed in the Kingdom, knew it existed actually." The group was silent, waiting for her to continue. "And according to her journal, dairy if you prefer-"

"Wait, so people had diaries back then?" Beast Boy asked.

"Not really, but again when you're a powerful sorceress..." She shrugged. "Anyway, all I know is that her journal tells more about her than any record from that time or other. All her thoughts, her spells and potions, her experiences, everything is in there. But her journal serves a larger purpose than merely keeping track of her days."

"And what would that be?" Starfire asked fascinated by all this. Shadow raised knowing and saddened eyes to them.

"It kept her sane." She muttered something under her breath, but none caught it. Her words had been _Much like mine do._ "For although knowledge is great and powerful, a fast mind can lead to deep thoughts on subjects which are better left thought shallowly upon." She received mostly blank stares. "Being smart can lead to madness when you think about something very complicated too hard." She clarified, sounding like she was talking to a child.

"So it's good to be dumb?" Beast Boy asked, scratching his head.

"No, not at all. But it is easier to confuse oneself with matters too large to comprehend where others would simply wave it away. Again we're off track. According to Hanara's journal, Natsala came to her in a dream one day when she was in her early twenties. She claims Mother Nature herself told her that a solid black mare like no other was going to appear by sunrise, and it was highly important to make sure the mare remained free and unharmed. She did what was commanded, and soon befriended said horse against all odds. You see, unlike all others, Wind Racer was smarter and understood more about humans than any horse she had met. And she knew what was going to happen if it wasn't stopped."

"And what was that?" Raven inquired.

"This." Shadow spun around with her hands held out. "Everything around you. Everything I've ranted about since I was in diapers. And so she was made a Messenger of Natsala, one of two. Hanara placed the instructed spell on her new friend, and Racer became forever young. She is mortal, mind you, but harder to kill and heals quickly. As long as her heart is beating she will live on. It's kind of funny. For an animal so intelligent, she thought I was Hanara herself." With this came a small giggle, and Racer made an irritated sound and pawed the ground. "But I pointed out the only difference besides attire and age."

"What would that be?" Robin questioned, finding it hard to believe someone from the past could look so similar to someone of the now. Shadow pointed at her eye.

"No red rim. Hanara was powerful, but she wasn't a half-breed." The last word held more than a little contempt.

"Excuse me! You there!" Cried someone from behind, running up to them with a cameraman and crew behind. The lady who had called was holding a mike and appeared to be a news reporter. "I'd like to ask some questions about the situation!" She reached them panting and straightening her skirt and shirt, making sure everything was in place as she stood before Robin and his group. Shadow had moved so she was hidden behind them. The news lady went on before they could accept or object. "What exactly is going on here?" She thrust the mike into Robin's face.

"It appears a wild horse was fleeing from the wild fires north of town and took a wrong turn into the city." Robin answered, all business.

"Is that so? Tell me, are the rumors about it actually _jumping_ over a _car_ true?" His masked eyes looked back for one moment before he answered.

"As we did not arrive in time to see any such event happen, if indeed it did occur, my team and I cannot prove or disprove the rumors. My guess, based on the size of said animal and general knowledge of the species, says they are false."

"I see. Where will the horse be taken now that it had been contained?" Again he looked back at his team, as if searching for an answer.

"We expect to have a vet check her over and with a clean bill of health she will be returned safely back where she belongs."

"Alright. Thank you for your time Robin of the Teen Titans. Keep up the good work." He flashed her a smile and nodded, saying they would. Then they went off and left the group alone. Shadow came out again once she was sure they were gone and went over to Racer.

"What was that about?" Cyborg asked her.

"It's best I'm seen by as few as possible." She replied, stroking Wind's muzzle. "But about something that woman spoke about." She turned to Robin.

"What is it?" He asked, sure that it wasn't something he was going to like.

"Well, she came here for a reason. And although she'd be perfectly fine back in the wild..."

"Oh, no. Nuh-uh! She cannot stay with us." He made hand motions to emphasize his "no."

"But Robin--" A glare shut Shadow up for the moment, but he could tell she was thinking of a way to convince him. "Okay. I'll just let her go on terrorizing the town as she sees fit. And if someone gets hurt because you wouldn't let her come..." She trailed off and said horse now looked up at him, as if joining in with her pleas.

"Where are we going to put a thousand pound horse?" Raven asked.

"And how are we going to feed it?" Cyborg joined in.

"She can sleep outside or in the garage. As for food, there's plenty of things I can bring in that won't cost a penny. And aren't illegal." She added and rolled her eyes when it looked like Robin was going to ask that very question. "Please? Or do I have to enact my current position and say she comes without question?"

"If she sleeps in the garage she better not touch my baby or leave any messes to clean up." Cyborg growled before his leader could respond.

"Not a problem."

"You really need to quit dragging home strays, Shadow." Robin said, but he sounded resigned. A few weeks earlier she had brought in a wounded cat that ended up shredding the couch. It was repaired, but the feline was healed so they made her give it away. It took forever before she would settle on a family to take the young adult.

"What? I fixed the couch. And you can't blame me for who I am." She crossed her arms and glared at him childishly. Robin sighed and dragged a glove down his face.

"Fine, fine. But _you_ take care of her, _you_ are responsible for her, etc., etc."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Let's go. People are going to start wondering why traffic is still jammed." She walked ahead and Wind Racer joined her, lead by nothing but a hand on her neck.

"You don't want to ride her?" Beast Boy asked, fascinated by the animal.

"Well, there are two problems to that. One, I've never ridden a horse before. Normally that wouldn't matter too much, but two is that she really hates humans and anything to do with them. That means tack of any kind and being ridden. The only reason she's letting me this close in the first place is because my ancestor was her first friend, I am the Queen, and she knows I won't hurt her."

"Really? So if I were to try and pet her-" Beast Boy reached out and Racer shied away with her ears flattened and her teeth bared. The green shifter backed up quickly and put his hands up in defense. "Sorry, sorry."

"You'd all do best to remember that. I said I was responsible for her, but if you get hurt by her when I'm not around then it's entirely your fault." Traffic had now begun to get back to normal as the frightened citizens were finding out the danger was gone or leaving.

"Robin?" Raven asked.

"Just, never mind." He waved her off, not even wanting to hear it.

When they arrived back at the tower, Racer having run beside the T-Car and matching its speed perfectly, Shadow immediately went out to the obstacle course with the mare. At first what was going on made the Titans cautious and worried, but soon they overcame it and watched with wonder. According to their new friend, the obsidian equine had asked Shadow to make various obstacles appear while she ran her own course. "Just to show me what she can do." Using only the ground and things upon it, she sent the mare through a varied course. Pillars arose in front of her, causing the mare to suddenly stop and swerve, they chased after the running creature and attempted to smash her to a pulp, smaller items were flung at her head and legs, and huge holes fell away.

"I thought you said you would never intentionally hurt an animal?" Beast Boy said after watching one moving column of earth miss the horse by inches.

"That still stands. If I see that there is a chance she will actually be hit, I'll stop it." The agility of the animal was impressive as it missed or overcame everything, trotting to a halt in front of them with barely a sweat worked up and her breathing returning to normal. The ground as well went back to the way it had looked before being messed with.

"That was spectacular! Please, how is it possible for such a creature to maneuver as such?" Starfire excitedly asked.

"She is a messenger of Natsala, and therefore has been gifted with extraordinary abilities. Like myself and all of you, without them she would not have lived this long. But now comes the hard part."

"What would that be?" Cyborg asked, eyeing the mare warily.

"I have to learn how to ride her while doing that." Her expression told that she did not want to go through with it.

"What? Why?" Robin asked.

"Like I said, she was sent here for a reason. Both of us believe that being able to ride her while going through something like that will be of great aide when the time comes. But before I can even start on that, we must deepen our shallow bond."

"Yes. It is important for trust to be made, and the bond strengthened before something like this can be accomplished." Beast Boy said, sounding oddly unlike himself. They all turned to look at him, but he just shrugged.

"I'm going to stay out here for a while."

"Okay, but remember our deal about her." Robin nodded at Wind Racer, who was watching them calmly. But those eyes, they held something more than the mere intelligence of a horse. For one, they were the exact same shade of Shadow's, only without the red. He had noticed that at the mention of Natsala, both pairs seemed to darken and brighten at the same time. Like someone who has heard something pleasing, but knows a dark secret about said subject.

For the next couple weeks their time was spent taking down bad guys, eating pizza, enjoying the new snow and end of autumn, and just taking advantage of the dropping crime rate. Except when dragged along, Shadow was barely seen inside. Mostly she worked with Wind Racer. It was slow going at first, and broken bones were mended many times before climbing back on. One day their progress was witnessed. She hadn't actually called the Teen Titans out to watch, rather Beast Boy had seen her and brought the others back with him. They stood clumped loosely together at the controls to the obstacle course, watching the horse and rider at the other end just standing there.

"Beast Boy, why did you--" Cyborg started.

"Hush! Just watch." He said in a whisper, watching with eagerness. It seemed an eternity they just stood there in silence, both manes of black being brushed by the teasing wind. Then Shadow leaned forward until her mouth was by the mare's ear, and appeared to whisper something. Instantly said equine's eyes shot open, her ears went back, Shadow sat back and gripped her mane, and the horse reared with a scream.

"Hey!" Robin shouted in surprise.

"Hush!" Beast Boy once again shushed them. Wind Racer landed with an audible thud and bolted straight to them. Again elemental obstructions swiped and lashed at the pair. In addition to having to hang on for dear life, Shadow was forced to duck from her own creations many times. But now some of the Titans' creations for the course came into play: spinning disks, large gates meant to crush, lasers and more. They were nearing the group at the incredible speed seen before, but this time there was more to it. This time true spirit was an influence in movement and momentum. Now they seemed in the clear of everything else, and Shadow raised her hands from their grip in Racer's mane. Her own eyes became a bright red-orange for a moment, and a towering wall of fire erupted from the earth, obstructing their view of horse and rider.

"Friend Shadow!" Starfire cried, and attempted to fly over and help.

"No! I know what it looks like, but just watch." He was growing irritated at his friend's actions. After a moment of wondering what had happened (not even the sound of thundering hooves could be heard over the fire's roar), a black shape soared through the wall of orange and red, seeming to be in slow motion. It was not, but to those being able to take in every detail time stretched on. Both pairs of eyes no longer seemed green, but a blazing orange only comparable by a raging flame. Bareback and with no halter of any kind, Shadow seemed like she had jumped a horse this way for many years. The horse herself seemed almost able to fly. Their hair and mane were swept back by the motion, giving a full view of her pointed ears and Racer's powerful neck. The front hooves landed and sparks seemed to fly from them. Before the back two could also land on solid ground again, the front two came up in a small hop so that the landing was more level. The wall went down, the orange from both pairs of eyes disappeared, but the intensity did not. A few more galloping strides and the run was ended with another rear and paw at the air. Then they were settled, and all was calm again. Time went back to normal. For a long time nobody said anything.

"Whoa. That. Was. Awesome!" Cyborg pumped a fist in the air. The other Titans sent up similar shouts of praise and awe, but in turn the receiver sat still, head down and still clutching the dark mane of hair. Finally she took a deep breath and slid down the right side of her mount.

"Are you alright?" Beast Boy asked.

"Yes. Better in fact." Shadow said quietly, and with little emotion. At first they were worried something had happened during the scene, but the smile that graced an appearance on her pale lips told them otherwise.

"Are you sure? You look kind of drained." Cyborg said.

"Yeah. Just trying to get over the rush of adrenaline."

"Is that what you've been working on all this time?" Raven asked. She was looking at the mare's hooves, wondering what could have caused those sparks. Unless they were just a trick of the imagination. And what was with that brand on her rump? Supposedly this horse was wild, and always had been.

"Yes. I think the time was well spent." She smiled and patted the horse's neck who was sniffing the ground, probably searching for some grass or other.

"Oh this is most joyous! Please, may I prepare a Pudding of Success?" Starfire asked, floating about a foot off the ground. She received looks of dread that were probably accompanied by similar thoughts to 'If she tries to leave, restrain her.' "Perhaps not." She said and blushed a little, trying to conceal her small smile of either embarrassment or amusement. They thought it both.

"I think I'm going to go take care of Wind and then go lay down for a bit." Shadow said wearily. They let her go and went back inside, planning on watching a movie coming on.

"Not that that was impressive," Robin began when they were inside, "but did anybody notice something odd? Some _things_?"

"Like the sparks." Raven stated.

"Or their eyes." Cyborg put in.

"The animal's mark upon her left flank." Starfire added.

"The fact that nothing was even singed when they came through that wall of fire." Beast Boy said.

"I know she has this great ability to communicate with animals and such, but there was something more going on when they went through that course." Robin deduced.

"They've both been touched." Beast Boy said, and they couldn't get any more out of him. The movie they watched was called _What Happens in Vegas_, and after it ended they went to their respective bedrooms still muttering funny quotes to themselves.

"Hey Robin, Beast Boy?" Raven asked as they were heading towards bed.

"Yeah?" They responded.

"It goes up, and it goes down." She mimicked lifting a toilet seat and then putting it back down.

"Ha ha, funny." Robin said dryly, but there was a small smile with it.

"Keep that up, Rae, and the seat will be gone in the morning." He also smiled.

"Uh huh, and if I found out you took it?" She threatened, and he shut up. But the humor was not gone from the air.

"That movie was most amusing, friends." Starfire said and giggled at something she thought of.

"Oh yeah. That was good." Cyborg chuckled. And then they separated and headed to their rooms for the night.

Beast Boy entered his room expecting his roommate to be sleeping. Instead, in light only projected by a cloud-covered moon, she was sitting up and looking at something in her hand. "What are you looking at?" He asked. She looked at him and tucked the object into the front of her suit quickly.

"Nothing." He believed it to be a necklace now, but had never seen her wearing one before.

"Oh." He said, sad that she wouldn't share with him. Of course she was entitled to her possessions and secrets, but he still felt left out when he wanted in. She seemed to notice this and looked down. The moon came out from behind its fluffy blanket and made her pale features even more ashen, also causing her green eyes and black hair to stand out all the more. He thought it made her even more beautiful, despite her expression. Shadow looked up at him and waved him over, turning the bedside lamp on and taking out the necklace. He sat on the bed next to her, his legs hanging over while hers were crossed and she was turned towards the foot of the bed. Now he could see the object for what it was. A plain piece of black chain held a large piece of what looked like polished rock.

"It's obsidian." She told him, as if reading his mind. And maybe she had for all he knew.

"Obsidian?" He had heard the word before, was sure of it, but couldn't remember what it was.

"Yes. It takes a lot of work to carve a piece to even the simplest of forms. It's not the hardest mineral, but pretty darn close."

"Okay. So why did you hide it when I came in?"

"Because it's special." She didn't speak for a bit and he was deciding on saying something himself or just going to his bunk when she began again. "My mother gave it to me for my sixth birthday because I like the stone so much."

"Oh. It's very pretty." He often wondered where her parents were, but had a hunch. As what seemed true with everybody on the team, he thought she was an orphan. But he wanted to make sure. "Where's your mother now?" He asked, hoping he wouldn't upset her too much. There was a long pause.

"She's gone to Natsala. My father too. And I don't say that just because I want it to be true, no. I know they were taken to her because she told me."

"I'm sorry. I guess the bright side is they were taken to her, but it still must suck." She nodded. "All of our parents are gone too." He said in a sympathetic tone.

"Yeah, but I bet they didn't go the way mine did. But I'm not going to talk about that right now. Other than memories, this is all that's left of them." She closed her hand over the stone and shut her eyes. Beast Boy put a hand over her own and looked into her eyes when she looked up.

"That's not true. _You're_ still here, and you're a part of them. Plus, whatever they did to deserve Natsala's company will live on, if only in the hearts of those who knew them. And as long as you remember them, they are still with you." He felt bad when he saw her hard eyes mist and cloud with tears, thinking he had upset her even further. He dropped his hand and turned away. "Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to--" He was cut off and nearly knocked over. He turned his head and saw that Shadow had lunged forward and caught him in a hug, making him both blush and feel very shocked. It was just so, not her. Slowly, he returned the gesture and they stayed that way for a minute.

"Thank you." Shadow whispered, desperately trying to hold back the tears. She couldn't understand why she was so upset, but was glad she was in the presence of someone who would not think her weak or "just being a girl" for letting them show. Then she released Beast Boy and sat back, her head down a bit and her eyes looking at her hands. She chanced to look up at him for a moment, and found both sympathy and something else in his gaze.

"You're welcome." He replied, still shocked at what had happened. Then his eyes widened. "Oh my god!" He said in a loud whisper.

"What? What's wrong?" She looked around as if searching for a threat.

"You _are_ human! It's a miracle!" He feigned disbelief and raised his hands as if thanking God for it.

"Oh you ass!" She punched his arm, hard enough to hurt but not with much enthusiasm. He grinned at her in return. She glared at him, but after a moment couldn't hold it any longer and smiled a bit.

"So, does this mean, we're friends?" He asked hopefully. She looked away, her brows knitted together in thought.

'_Friends? Could I really go through that again? After…after what happened? The real question is: Could my mind take it if something…happened? Maybe. Certainly my heart would take little damage after being trained for so long. But could I really?'_

Beast Boy was starting to lose hope when she looked up at him with a smile. "Yes, I think we are." He grinned at this, but couldn't help seeing the cloud behind her eyes. Almost as if she was dreading the decision. But he was too happy to think on it. Instead, this time he embraced her shortly, said goodnight, and then went up to his own bunk. Both soon fell asleep, Shadow thinking that now she had accepted one all of them could be her friends. It would be more than she had ever had of their kind. And so the Titans drifted away for another night: Starfire with Robin, Raven under her covers, Cyborg plugged in, and Shadow and Beast Boy in their own part of the one bed. Who would have guesses that a surprise attack had been planned for early in the morning?

Five in the morning. The sun hardly casting any light upon the western world. Most still sleeping soundly. All unaware of what was about to begin.

At five in the morning, when the city was still enveloped in its blanket of dreams and peace, one figure walked through the empty streets. In the dark of pre-dawn at most it was a shadow in the vague shape of a person. They moved with no real intent of going anywhere, only looking around at the darkened shops, stores, and residences. It seemed to be walking aimlessly, but had in fact been sent here with purpose. The person-like thing stopped in front of a fire hydrant and looked at it. This would do. It raised an arm and pointed it at the hydrant. It began to shake and groan, soon shooting up a stream of water. Once it had coated a good portion of the street and surrounding area, the figure once again made a motion and the wet street became covered in slick ice. It then made its way to other hydrants, repeating the process. Where the first had been damaged, a car that had been heading to work skidded and barely managed to keep from crashing into a nearby street lamp, coming to rest against a mailbox after skidding some more. The bewildered driver stepped out of his car to try and find out just what was going on, and promptly fell on his ass with a cry. Trying to get up did no good, and as time wore on more and more drivers faced the same problem. A few were either sent into objects, hit by other cars, or came to an unstable stop in the middle of the roads. The figure watched some of this chaos with a sly grin, slipping into the shadows to wait.

"I am going to kill whoever dared wake me up this early in the morning." Raven grumbled as she rushed into the common room with the others. The alarm had gone off only seconds before, but was quickly getting on their nerves. Cyborg shut it off.

"I second that motion." Shadow said, also irked.

"It looks like some of the fire hydrants on-yawn- messed up." He reported.

"Where? I couldn't hear over your yawn." Robin moved to his friend's side to get a better look.

"Sorry. 32nd and Fillmore. What's weird is that the streets and sidewalks are frozen, making everything slick."

"Frozen? But it's not cold enough for that, yet." Robin said, leaning into the screen.

"Well, it happened."

"Wait, do you know how the hydrants broke?" Shadow asked.

"Eye witnesses-who the hell is up at this time?- report they just shot their tops off and began spraying water everywhere. And then the water froze and they started having accidents. Why?" He turned to look at her.

"I think I know who did this."

The scene they arrived to was one of confusion and utter disorientation. Road blocks had been put up to prevent more people making the scene worse, and police and firefighters were doing their best to get the poor victims onto safe ground again. As it was, the most common measure was to throw a rope out and pull them back in. They didn't have proper footwear or tire chains that could support them on the slickness. The Titans went to work using their skills to get the civilians back to safety, even removing the cars in the ice zone. Once the area was cleared out, they stood on the edge of the scene and looked at the frozen water covering the street. The hydrants that had caused the problem were likewise covered in thick ice.

"Ice!" Shadow shouted.

"Yes, that's what it's called." Beast Boy responded like he was talking to a particularly dim person. "It's everywhere." She ignored him, and instead fixed her gaze at a streetlamp directly ahead of the group.

"I know you're there. Come on out." She called again, crossing her arms.

"What are you--" Robin stopped when he heard slow clapping from the direction Shadow was looking.

"Very good, Shadow. You figured me out. And so soon! I'm impressed." A figure stepped into the light, now letting its hands fall back to its sides. The figure was a teenaged male, with snow-white hair, piercing blue eyes, and pale skin. His hair was spike like Robin's, but not as sharply. His thin eyebrows were the same color as his hair, and he was dressed in a white cloak that went down to his boots. These were black, and looked similar to Shadow's, except without the steel. He stood a good 6' 3", and looked muscular even through his clothing. Although he was wearing a sly grin, Shadow did not look pleased to see him.

"What are you doing here, Ice?"

"What? A guy can't take a stroll through town?" He gave her a look of innocence.

"At this time of day?" Robin inquired. He didn't know who this was, but from Shadow's response to finding out what caused the scene and then her attitude to the guy, he guessed this wasn't someone on their side.

"You do it. And so do you, my dear." He looked first from Robin, then to Shadow. Both were quiet, the rest of the Titans watching with curiosity and watchfulness. They were on alert incase this went the wrong way. Ice gave a small sigh. "You know perfectly well why I'm here, Shadow."

"What? Slade too chicken to come after me himself?" She feigned a surprised gasp. "Does he finally realize how dangerous I am? My god the man gained a brain cell!" She raised her arms to the sky momentarily before dropping them at her sides. The one called Ice quirked a smile.

"Maybe. I didn't ask anyway. He said you were hiding out at Titans Tower and to find a way to flush you out. My plan seemed to work."

"You're working for Slade?' Robin growled.

"Shut up." Shadow snapped and gave him a sideways glare, then flicked it back to the teen before them. "Tell me Ice, are you still second best?" Her tone was teasing.

"No. While you were gone I rose to the top. And if you're wondering, Silvia is the new TG."

"_Silvia_? That two-timing, good-for-nothing, blond bimbo, NCLB _bitch_?" She looked at him as if begging it to be a joke. The Titans just glanced at each other and shrugged.

"My words exactly. She can't hold a candle to you, my dear." He grinned at her, exposing white teeth that had a slightly pointed look.

"Quit it."

"What, my dear?" He cocked his head.

"That 'my dear' crap and whatever else you might think of calling me."

"Okay. We need to get down to business anyway."

"Ah yes. Let me see if I get this right. You're supposed to capture me, drag me back to the Facility, deliver me to Slade, and receive your award knowing that my punishment will be very severe and I may never see daylight again. Correct?" He winced minutely at her words, but nodded. "Well, that's not going to happen."

"I have orders." He stated, the excuse sounding very weak.

"Let's see if you can follow them. How about we do this Trial F35? Sound fair?"

"F35? Are you sure? The last time you tried that, my element beat your horribly."

"I still beat you. Yes, I'm sure."

"Okay. But just so you know, I have been practicing even harder since you disappeared." He took off his cloak and exposed the blue and white shirt and pants beneath. They could now see he was also wearing black and white gloved, which he also took off and laid beside the cloak. Shadow made her own gloves melt back into the rest. Then her long hair tied itself into a braid on its own. She had explained earlier that when using her mid powers, her eyes faded a little as if white was added or intensity taken away. This happened now, though they still found it a little creepy.

"So have I." She smirked.

"Shadow, what are you doing? Because whatever it is--" Robin was cut off again.

"Stay out of this. I can't guarantee he won't kill you." She stepped onto the ice and a hissing sound and steam came immediately.

"Ow!" Ice said in a most male manner. She just scowled and continued forward, steam issuing from each step until a thin fog seemed to envelop her.

"What is going on?" Robin repeated, desperate for answers. It looked like they were about to battle, but without knowing just what to do he was grasping at anything that might help.

"I believe they are going to work out their differences." Starfire offered.

"That's one way to put it." Raven put in.

"Okay, but what is F35?" They all shrugged.

"Is there anyway we can stop them? What if they damage the city?" Cyborg asked, now watching the two standing in the street about ten feet apart.

"Think of it this way. Both are Alphas of whatever pack they are in, and they need to find out who is the better of the two. And like she said, if we get in the way we'll likely get killed or badly injured." They looked at Beast Boy. "What? It's true!"

"So all we can do is try to make sure they don't damage anything too badly." Cyborg said.

"Then that's our job right now." Robin stated.

"But what about the…ice? Where did it go?" Starfire asked, looking around at the iceless area.

"I thought we'd start on a fair playing ground, don't you?" Shadow asked her opponent.

"You _have_ been practicing." Ice said, looking around. The pavement was still wet, but indeed clear of every shard of ice.

"Katuri." Shadow said, and bowed her head a bit.

"Katuri." Ice replied, doing the same.

"Katuri?" Cyborg asked, seeing them shift into battle stances.

"It means 'may the best win.'" Beast Boy responded. Without warning, Ice raised his hand and five spears of ice shot towards Shadow. She in turn raised her own hand and knocked them aside, shaking away the blood that welled from the puncture wounds.

"That the best you can do?" She taunted, then ducked when more ice flew at her head. This time it was Ice who ducked when she sent a whip of fire his way. The game had begun.

It went on for a good hour that way. Shadow would dodge and strike, then Ice would dodge and strike. They seemed equally matched, the only hits having been Ice's original and one Shadow dealt out some time later. The burn mark on his back was hard to miss. The closer they got the more they simply used their bodies to attack, matching each other move for fast move. When chasing after her or leading Shadow away, Ice would usually create a slide of ice he could ride on. After a few times of his opponent melting this beneath him, the teen gave it up and resorted to plain old roof-running. The Titans followed close by, doing their best to protect the buildings, cars and other object, and idiot people who just had to come and get close to it. One such woman was barely knocked out of the way by Beast Boy when a chunk of ice flew her way. But was there gratitude? Nope, not at all. Just went away grumbling about her hair and dress being ruined, not even saying thank you to the young man who saved her life. Now both contenders were facing each other on the ground again, and good seven streets away from where they started.

"Ready to give up yet?" Ice taunted.

"No, I've still one tick up my sleeve."

"What? The floating dragon head wasn't enough? That thing nearly bit my own head off!"

"That was the point." She said dryly. A red and orange circle slowly encircled the young man, but he didn't seem to notice. Beast Boy was starting to feel a slight case of déjà vu, though he couldn't remember what about. The circle was complete, and the flickering increased. Now Ice saw it, and took a step closer to inspect the strange thing. The circle quickly became a towering cylinder of fire around him.

"Oh shit!" Now Beast Boy remembered why he felt déjà vu. His dream! "we've got to stop her!"

"I thought you said--" Robin started.

"This was in my dream! She's going to go in there and push him through!" He was frantic.

"What?! But that would--"

"The point! Shadow! Don't!" He rushed off with the others close behind. She was already walking into the fire, hands clasped behind her and her back straight. The thin wall thickened to roughly a foot in depth, the roar making it hard to hear anything above it.

"We have to get it put out!" Robin cried.

"The water's been shut off for this whole section!" Cyborg called. Before they could try and figure anything else out, a loud scream of pain was heard and a figure came out of the opposite side of the wall. It hit the side of a clothing store, and slumped to the ground. Abruptly the tower receded to nothing, as if a giant candle had just been blown out. They could now see Shadow walking over to Ice.

"Shadow!" Robin shouted, and began to run over to her. A flick of her hand and all of them were pinned against a building opposite to the one she was at. She knelt down to the steaming and badly burned teen. He was amazingly still conscious, and looked up at her.

"You lose. Tell Slade that the next one he sends after me won't end up so lucky." She stood up and Ice disappeared in a hole of black, the hole itself receding to nothing. She heard the approaching footsteps and turned around so quickly that they stopped instantly, probably vaguely thinking she would come after them next. Indeed she was hyped-up and ready for more, but she willed that away, reminding herself that these were friends. They were mad friends, but friends. "He'll be healed within a few days with only the smallest possibility of scarring." She said before an enraged traffic light could growl at her.

"You know the laws! We can't keep protecting you and putting your actions off!" He yelled at her.

"The laws?" Her tone seemed amused, but her face and voice quickly darkened. "Isn't kidnapping against your law? Isn't torture against your law? How about starvation, abandonment, rape, murder, chemical testing, physical and emotional abuse, poisoning, hanging, decapitation, burning, man slaughter, animal cruelty, sexual molestation, and all the other shit that went on where I was kept for the last ten years? According to your _laws_, it's supposed to be. But was anything ever done about it? No. Did people know? For a little while. How many have died inside those walls for the pure amusement and research? Too many. How many have taken their own lives because they couldn't stand it anymore? Too many. How many became superhuman freaks that will never be able to 'fit in' again? A good amount. Your _laws _are highly flawed, many make no logical or rational sense, and do they actually protect those they are supposed to? No. so don't throw that crap at me anymore. I follow the original laws, the laws that were set to maintain balance, actually keep the followers' safe, and will be here long after yours are gone. According to those laws, what I did was justified and allowed." She was ranting again, but no one dared say anything yet. "And as far as protecting me? Are you _kidding_? Do you really think I need protection, from anything but myself? Jail. Nothing but another cage I can easily escape from. The government says I don't exist; that I was declared dead years ago. I can disappear from this world as easily as the wind goes through an open prairie." She sighed. "I know the sacrifices you're making for me, and I appreciate it. For whatever reason you're doing it for unworthy me, I thank you. But you must also take into consideration what I'm giving up for you. My lifestyle is not suited to being around others I'm not allowed to harm. I haven't been seen publicly by anybody save my victims since my disappearance. I'm not a creature of the daylight, though I do enjoy the sun occasionally. And then there's you, Robin." He glared at her, waiting for the speech to continue. "You're human, which put you at high risk in the beginning. I've learned to curb my hatred for you, as it seemed you had by best interest in mind at times, and helped me when I actually needed it. But there's another part of me, the feral part if you wish to call it so, that reacts to every cut or scratch that breaks the skin. Every time you get to close, any of you even, I have to suppress it or risk killing you right there. Have you not noticed that when you receive a paper cut or slice your finger with a knife how I react?" His nodded slowly, beginning to realize what she was getting at. Just a few days ago he was cooking and the knife slipped, nicking his finger only enough to dray the slightest amount of blood. He had looked over when Shadow had suddenly stopped talking in mid-sentence and gone completely still, her eyes squeezed shut. Then she left quickly and said nothing when asked about it.

"So, what, you're a vampire or something?" Beast Boy asked incredulously

"No, but I have vampiric traits, as you've noticed. My fangs are what make most people start studying me closely. Then my sharp senses and reflexes. And, of course, that great attraction to blood."

"What started that…attraction, if you don't mind." Robin asked cautiously, remembering make sure to be more careful and keep his distance when hurt.

"For one, I'm more in tune with my predatory instincts. And when you've tasted blood, are starving, and there is someone bleeding in front of you…" She shrugged, letting her sentence trail. "In case you're wondering, I first tasted human blood when I bit some guy's hand, hard. I broke all his fingers, many carpals, and left it mutilated in one swift bite." She looked up as if admiring the memory.

"Okay, enough." Beast Boy waved his hands in front of him, looking a little more green than normal. Shadow smirked.

"Squeamish? I could tell you stories that would probably leave you without an appetite for days." He blanched.

"Let's just, go home, okay?" Robin sounded weary and ran a hand through his spiked hair. They all agreed, though none could make eye contact with the girl in black for the rest of the day. As was usual, in just one day they had a whole new heap load of information and questions to dissolve. It was a eventful day and they all went to bed early, even the Queen herself. That night-loving creature.

Robin and Starfire lay together in his bed, both content with the other's presence. It was the alien who broke the silence, however.

"Robin?" She asked quietly.

"Yes, Starfire?" He murmured into her blazing hair. She hesitated, wondering whether or not to forget her question.

"The things Shadow mentioned about what she calls 'the Facility'…" Robin groaned.

"Her again? Can't one conversation be about something that doesn't involve her?" He complained.

"I am sorry, Robin. I will go to sleep now." She sounded disappointed, and he sighed.

"No, ask your question."

"Do you believe all of it is true? That they did what she claimed?" He paused, thinking it over.

"Yes. She has no reason to lie to us about that and seemed very sincere."

"How much do you think they did to her?" She twisted in his grip so she could face him, her light green eyes peering into his masked ones. He didn't answer at first, wondering if he should tell her what he thought, if it mattered.

"I'm not sure." He replied finally, looking away.

"Is it right?" She asked him, the uncertainty in her voice apparent.

"Is what right?" He thought she meant about what they did, but wanted to clarify.

"To keep her here?" Her question surprised him and he sat up. Starfire followed and they sat looking at each other in the dim light of the table lamp.

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I am saying. Is it right to keep Shadow here?" She repeated.

"Starfire, we're not _keeping_ her with us. She's free to go."

"If that is true, why is she still here? Do you not recall when you kept her back, would not let her escape our home? At first I believed you to be correct in your actions, despite her unhappiness and anger. But now…" She looked down at her hands clasped in her lap.

"Are you saying that I'm keeping her here against her will?" She didn't answer. He was about to say how ridiculous she was being. Hadn't Shadow been allowed to leave the tower with them? Hadn't she found every possible exit and still stayed with them? But then he thought about it. _With them_. She had never left the tower on her own, because he said she couldn't without supervision. She wasn't allowed to wander alone outside, and even sometimes through the tower. The way she looked at whoever was present when she found a new way to get out and ignored it. His eyes were widening as the realization dawned.

"'I am an animal in a cage, and you are the key. My cage becomes wider with each day, but never does freedom come closer. I could take the key and go my way, but something stops me and I hate it. This is not who I am, not who I want to be, and cannot afford to be. But the change has resulted from you.'" Starfire said.

"What?" He looked at her swiftly, confused and a little worried.

"That is what she told me last night. I was talking to her when she was taking care of her horse, and after a time she confessed how she felt about being here. When she says you, she means us all."

"Is that what she said?" She nodded. "I was just trying to keep everybody safe. And if that means she can't be happy then so be it." He said sternly. Starfire looked up at him.

"And are you happy? Do you enjoy taking somebody's freedom away from them? Their dreams, their duties, their _life_? She wants to leave, that she is sure of. But something keeps stopping her, and she cannot figure it out. Shadow is a _hunter_, and you cannot change that any more than you can change my alien roots or Cyborg being half mechanical. Raven is half demon, Beast Boy has animal DNA and is green, and you were once the partner to the Batman." He glared at her for a moment, but couldn't hold it against her light green orbs. As if knowing what he was thinking, she continued. "If she does harm someone, as she did with that young male, then that is what will happen. But she is _trying_, can you not see this?"

"Yes." He resigned, and looked down.

"She is trying to be good, to change, to be someone she is not…For us." His head snapped up to look at her again.

"Why? Doesn't she hate us?"

"Have you lost your sight, Robin? Can you not see that she is trying to be nicer towards us? That she does not anger as quickly over our actions? Friend Beast Boy says she has accepted him as a friend, and I believe she thinks of the rest of us the same way."

"We're her friends?" He repeated in an unbelieving tone. Starfire nodded.

"But I fear she is hiding something of great importance. Not only about her past, but about the future, and it involves us."

"What?"

"I have been having…dreams…about her." He looked at her, waiting for her to continue. When she didn't he asked what they consisted of. "I always see her, standing somewhere. It changes from a forest, to a grassy hill, to a desert at night."

"And is she always facing away?" He asked, having a feeling she had the same dream.

"Yes. Do you have these visions as well?" She asked, surprised. He nodded. "Then you know what happens next, do you not?" She sounded sad. Again he nodded. She turned around in the dream, a pained and saddened expression on her face. "I'm sorry, but it has to be this way. Remember what I've taught you, and you might yet have a chance." Shadow would tell them, and then she'd fade away like black smoke in the wind. That's when the screaming would start. Horrible, terrified screaming from nearby. They would turn and see the city in flames and broken. People were running hither and thither, and were being killed quickly. But it wasn't just the gruesome sight of people being killed that scared them. No, it was that _animals_ were doing it. Cougars, wolves, mobs of birds, horses, _pets_. And for no reason, they somehow knew it was happening all over the world at the same time. From a cloud of smoke a giant figure would appear, huge cylinders of flames spouting from it's maw of teeth and sweeping across the buildings. Not one animals was touched, and hardly any plant life bothered. But any person caught in the path of the fire was roasted instantly. Others were snatched up and eaten. As the monster moved to clearer air, they could determine it was a very large dragon of black and purple with searing red eyes. But though this site chilled their very bones and made them sick, one creature emerged that made them frightened beyond what they ever could have imagined. It was similar to a mountain lion, but the size of a Siberian tiger. Mostly black, the cat-thing had blood-red around its muzzle, ear tips, paws, and tail tip. With every step the potential power and speed within it was evident, and it was coming straight for them. It stopped its slow stalk, long teeth bared and sharp claws extended. Beside it Shadow would appear, and ask if what they saw was justified. When they replied no, this is what happened. "Then you have chosen your fate, and I am sorry." She would look at the large cat next to her, and her next words were always memorable. "Kill them." Just before the creature of speed and power could descend on them, everything would go black and they would wake up.

"Have we all been having this dream?" Robin asked.

"I am not sure, but I hope not. It is most terrible, is it not?"

"Yes, it is. But does it mean anything?"

"I believe so. How could something that frightening that comes so often not have meaning?" They were silent for a long while, until Starfire yawned.

"Let's get some sleep. And try not to dream." He kissed her forehead and lay down next to her again, forcing himself to think only of her while drifting off. Of course, though, one cannot control what they dream, and dream they did. Even Shadow had this dream, but she was always in her position in the other's dreams, looking down at all of them.

The next morning everything was quieter than normal. Every resident in the tower looked like they had lost sleep, and not just because of what took place last night. When the subject of their dreams walked through the door, nobody noticed how all of them quickly looked away or flinched.

"Is something wrong?" She asked casually, but her voice betrayed what she was sure she knew.

"No." The Titans replied at once, and looked at each other.

"It's fine, Shadow. We're all just a little peeved about last night." Robin replied, sipping his coffee again. She looked at him ling and hard.

"Are you sure that it's not…something else?" She didn't look at them as she sat down at the table. They all looked at each other again, and she told herself that probing their minds would not help.

"Should we tell her?" Beast Boy asked.

"I think she already knows." Cyborg replied.

"If it's about a…dream, then yes."

"Would you happen to know what it's about?" Robin questioned. She looked at him for a while before dropping her eyes. She knew. "Why won't you tell us?"

"Because the answer is already there. And it's not my place." She almost sounded regretful. "But there's something else I need to discus with you. It's important." She added when it looked like they were going to question her further about the nightmare.

"What is it, friend Shadow?" Starfire asked nicely. She didn't answer at first, and they thought of pressing her.

"I…have to go somewhere. For a while…" She looked down at her hands laying palm down on the table.

"Where? And how does this concern us?" Robin questioned. Again she paused.

"Do you remember me telling you about Adariah?" The nodded, having heard her speak of it vaguely before. "That's where I'm going."

"Where exactly _is_ Adariah?" Cyborg asked.

"And how long will you be gone?" Raven added.

"It's an island in the middle of the Pacific. The only ones who have ever known its location or of its existence have been my family." She took a deep breath, preparing herself for her next words. "I need to leave very soon, and will be gone for several months…Or I may not come back at all." She glanced up to see their reactions.

"What do you mean 'not come back'?" Beast Boy shouted.

"Yeah, and why do you have to go?" Cyborg asked.

"How is it possible for an island to exist without anybody else knowing about it?" Raven inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Please do not go!" Starfire begged. Robin remained silent, thinking on his conversation with Starfire last night.

"Can I just know a few things before you leave?" He asked when everybody was quiet. His shocked friends looked at him.

"You're…letting me leave? No fight?" Shadow clarified. He nodded. "What do you want to know?"

"How big, why, and where?" She frowned and put a hand to her chin. "Do you have a very recent map of the world?" Robin walked off and returned a few minutes later, placing the paper in front of her. She grabbed a pencil and studied it for a minute, running her fingers along the bumps and creases in the water. Then she placed the pencil down and drew a rough circle, the marks taking their own shape according to the physical features. When she was finished with the outline, it showed an island a little smaller than Australia with a small peninsula pointing West.

"Wow. It's really there, huh?" Cyborg looked up from the drawing to Shadow, who nodded.

"How can something so large and so near other islands not be charted or known about?" Raven asked skeptically. Shadow grinned crookedly.

"There is a magnetic field surrounding Adariah that causes electronics to go haywire and steer what ever they are driving away from sight and then back onto course. If something does manage to get through, there are large whirlpools surrounding the perimeter that will suck in anything that gets too close." She explained. Cyborg whistled. "As for why I'm going, I've been told it's important. And I really want to go."

"How would you get there?" Robin asked. Shadow raised her hands and made flapping motions. "Oh, right."

"Do you…_want _to come back?" Beast Boy asked cautiously, looking at her from beneath his lashes. She looked down, biting her lip.

"I'm…not sure. Maybe, but that was my second home when I was young. In a way it was my only real home." He looked hurt, but tried not to show it. "All I know is that this is one mission you can't come along with me on. It's far too dangerous and I can't be positive you'd ever get back." She gave them stern looks, but an emotion hidden behind her emeralds lessened the glare. Beast Boy's stern look had more feeling.

"I'm coming."

"What?" They replied in unison.

"I said no." Shadow growled.

"Yes."

"Beast Boy--" Robin laid a hand on him and it was shaken roughly off.

"I want to go."

"No!"

"Why not?" He glared at her. Her response took them all for surprise.

"Because I don't want to get you killed!" She shouted and stood up. "I can't protect you over there! My status as Queen mean _nothing_ to them, don't you understand? _**Nothing!**_ The only way you'd ever have a chance is if their leader remembers me and decides none of us are food, and she may not even be alive anymore. Even if she is, who's to say she hasn't forgotten us, or changed her mind? I can't…I can't do it again." She slumped back down and covered her face. "Not again." They glared at Beast Boy for a moment before Starfire floated over and put a tentative hand on her shoulder.

"Do what again?" Shadow pulled the necklace out of her top and looked at it sadly.

"It's my fault they're dead." She whispered. "If I had just stopped talking he wouldn't, they wouldn't…" She put her head down and covered it, fighting the silent sobs that racked her body.

"It is of the okay. All that is over, and we are here." Starfire tried to comfort Shadow. After a minute she regained herself and straightened up, giving the alien princess a smile only she saw.

"Look, I just--it would be a lot safer for you all to stay here and go on with your lives. When--_if_--I come back, then you can decide if I'm still welcome."

"You'll always be welcome here." Robin smiled at her.

"Yeah. Other than me, you're the best cook around here." Cyborg put in.

"Starfire finally has someone to talk to in her own language." Raven added.

"Robin has someone that's an actual challenge to spar with." Beast Boy said.

"Raven does not feel as if nobody can understand her other half anymore." Starfire spoke.

"And Beast Boy was never happier then with you around." Robin stated. Shadow looked around at them all, realizing that it was true. These were hr friends, and she'd never had better. They cared for her, put up with her antics, and were willing to put themselves in serious danger for her.

"I still can't put you in danger like that."

"What if we all came? Safety in numbers." Robin asked. They looked at him, not believing he had just suggested they all go into something they may not come out of, without needing to.

"Right." She said sarcastically. "Who would take your place looking after the city? And if you never come back? Your first day there could very possibly be your last. What then?" She remembered something from her second dream the night before. _"If they know what's at stake and still want to come, then let them."_ It was silent for a while as they all regarded each other.

"I still want to go." Beast Boy said defiantly.

"We can ask some other members to take over while we're gone. And if we don't come back…there are always more people up for the job." He said it lightly, but the seriousness was behind his words.

"You're sure you want to come? All of you?" They nodded. She sighed. "Fine. We leave tomorrow." She got up from the table.

"Wait, tomorrow? But it's a week until Christmas." Beast Boy pointed out, also getting up. The others followed.

"Is that a problem?" Her eyes narrowed.

"No, I just though that you might want to be around then." He shifted.

"The trip can't wait. Either come or don't and be here for your holiday."

"We'll come. I'll go make the arrangements for the others to come." Robin went to the computer to search for available members who would stick around for the time intended.

"Since we're all going, why don't we take the T-Ship?" Cyborg suggested.

"You don't mind that it will act insane and stop working once we get to a certain point?" She asked. He shook his head after a moment. "I suppose it would be easier than having to carry a few of you that far and better than giving you a bad case of the chills." She nodded and turned to go spend time with Wind Racer. Beast Boy followed, leaving the others to make preparations.

Racer nickered a greeting when she saw Shadow, and flattened her ears at Beast Boy when he came into view a few feet behind. He stopped and lingered back.

"Yes?" Shadow asked, picking up a comb for her horse's mane and tail.

"I just wanted to watch. Now that you mention it though, what's going to happen to her?" He looked at Wind.

"She'll go back to her herd and daughter. If I come back then she will find me. After that neither of us is sure." She said, working on a particularly stubborn tangle while the equine stood patiently, her eyes on Beast Boy. When Shadow saw the look, she gave the horse a light but firm slap and told her to stop it.

"Okay." He shifted his feet. "Was she the one who told you to go?"

"No." He waited for more, but nothing came.

"Then who was it?"

"Natsala."

"Natsala? But how…?" Shadow gave a short laugh.

"Mother Nature is not simply every plant or animal you see around you. She is a physical entity, and lives within everything she has made. Rarely does she act out of normal by speaking to one of her creations or speeding something up. But she's done both, and told me that I must go to Adariah. For what reason I haven't a clue, but I'll do best not to argue." She moved onto the tail.

"What…what makes the island so dangerous?" He wasn't sure he wanted to know.

"There are creatures there that absolutely detest humans, even though most haven't seen one. Because they were made directly by Natsala, the fact that I am Queen does not hold anything to them. To them I am simply something that smells half human and walks on two legs. To them I am liable to be food. And so are you." She put the comb away and went to work on the body, turning her glove into something resembling a brush. "This is why I don't want you to come along, but you've chosen your path. I only hope it doesn't lead to disaster."

"Should we just stay then?" She stopped her work and lowered her head.

"I hate to admit it, but I'm torn between answers." He looked up, confused. "I don't want you to get hurt, but I'll miss you. And for some part of me wanting you to come along, I feel ashamed. Especially since it can't turn out well…Unless we get lucky." There was silence for a moment, and he had almost decided to go back when Shadow asked him a question.

"You want to help?" Was she actually suggesting he get near that devil horse who'd sooner see him dead than give up eating?

"Are you sure? She won't, you know, try to kill me?"

"She better not or I'll slap her." This was mostly spoken to the subject of the conversation, who snorted in return.

"Well, I mean if you're sure…" He took a timid step forward, testing the horse. When no apparent reaction was noted, he came the rest of the way over, slowly. Shadow handed him a brush and moved to the front. Still unsure and looking at her to make sure, he began to groom Racer's back.

"Hey!" He looked swiftly at Shadow, thinking it was he she was talking to. Instead she had brought a hand under the mare's chin and lifted it up, almost as if there was a invisible halter attached. "Be good. He's not even human." Her words stung a little bit, but he looked down and saw the horse's leg return to normal. "Good girl." She patted the large, black chest and went back to work, giving him a small smile. This encouraged him, and for the next few minutes they worked mostly in silence. Occasionally Wind Racer needed some discipline, but never once did she get a hit in.

The rest of the morning was spent packing and preparing. Bumble Bee's team could take over for a while, and after that some new recruits were to come in. Everything was set, and everybody still couldn't figure out why Robin had decided to let them all go along so easily. Starfire had an idea it had to do with their conversation the night before. They slept uneasily that night, all of them knowing it could be their last, and none changing their minds to go. Shadow was still hoping they would change their minds, but by early morning they were loaded into the T-Ship and ready to go. Titans East were saying their good-bye's and assuring their friends the city and tower would be taken care of.

"Are you all sure you still want to go?" Shadow asked doubtfully.

"Of course." Cyborg replied heartily.

"Why not?" Raven said.

"You are our friend! We will come with you." Starfire smiled.

"Just try and stop us." Robin challenged lightly.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world." Beast Boy stated. Shadow sighed.

"Alright. Let's go." A few minutes later they were in the air, headed for the strangest and most deadly place they would ever hear of or visit. A place where so many questions would be answered, and far more risen.

(A/N: Woot! 26 pages! My god! I hope nobody has to come back to this just to finish it like I did for many stories. It didn't exactly end where I wanted it to, but there is no way I was going to go that far. I've read chapters 50 pages or more, and it takes two-three times of coming back just to get through it -.- I'm going to have so much fun torturing Shadow in the sequel^^ 0.o She heard me. Okay, so, life sucks, new unusual pets, none have returned, all the usual. Have a lovely day and enjoy whatever makes you happy!)


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